The Door To Beyond
by Emily'sMindPalace
Summary: Months after Pitch Black made his attack on the Guardians and the children of the world, they're enjoying the peace of being together more often. But something's wrong... Jack Frost is plagued by nightmares, and his fears only grow with every waking minute. Pitch is closing in, and nobody knows how to help the injured Guardian. As he goes from worse to worst, all hope seems lost.
1. Prologue

Darkness overthrew the underground caverns like an eclipse of the sun. They were littered with ancient marble pillars, crumbling from age and wear, and the corridors and halls were damp and cold. It was vast- like a lost city- but it belonged to him now. The man of dark. The man who ruled over anything dark. The man who _was_ dark _itself_.

Pitch Black was his name, and still is to this very day, but it wasn't always. Sometimes he's known as the Boogeyman, and people have always been afraid of him.

In his cavern, Pitch Black has worked tirelessly for weeks, months, _years_ to create his masterpiece. These were the final stages. He pulled a thin blade from his robe and looked over a pot hung over a fire, its contents heating until smooth and melted. He lifted the knife to his arm and smoothly sliced through his own flesh, wincing as little as he could, and let his blood drip into the pot. He watched as the molten metal fizzed and bubbled, spluttering stomach churning smells out into the already stagnant air. That was it- the last ingredient- a blood sacrifice.

Pitch took the pot in a gloved hand and carried it cautiously over to a table with many tools strewn across it, where he lay it gently. He prepared his instruments, then lifted the pot again before it got too cold, and poured out the bright coloured sludge into two casts. They were the exact opposite of each other, and as soon as the liquid hit the moulds they began to change colour to a deep black. An enormous stone bowl of water stood next to him, and he took the two casts in tongs and held them under the cool water. They hissed and bubbled, then the red all died out of them, and when they were brought out, they were a shining silver. Pitch took them back to the table and held his works up to look at them. Slowly, and with surgeon's precision, he forged together four pieces of metal. On one, he engraved writing that was understood by no one and smiled, his sharp and dull coloured teeth glinting through his thin onyx lips.

As all four pieces came together, the fate of thousands of people shifted, but for one boy in particular. Not that anybody knew that- the boy wasn't even born yet- so the years would take their part in the delay of Pitch's evil work.  
The Boogeyman lifted his creation into a single stream of light that fell from above, and stared at its glistening form. It was hypnotising- every inch of it shone in pure evil magnificence, and he grinned like a child given chocolate. The handle was thin and curved, curls of metal twisting outwards in deep black glory. But it was the blade… It glowed silver and bright, and Pitch laughed. Every wave in its smooth form would cause more pain, and he knew it.

It was his perfect weapon- to start his perfect reign.

* * *

_**3000 years later**_

The wind whistled through the trees and the streets of Burgess, the heat catching the town off guard. The crisped leaves that had settled across the ground shuddered in the breeze and the sound of the city buzzed around, cars and people and children playing.

Joe, a forty-going-on-sixty year old man, sunk against the wall of the small hut. The red bricks were frosted over and stained with years of tarnishing weather, but he leant against it despite the ivy and moss that crawled the walls. A thermos flask in one hand, he sipped at his morning coffee and looked out across the town only slightly below him, enjoying the heat in his throat juxtaposing the bitter cold at his hands and cheeks. After finishing his mug, he cracked his knuckles and arched his back to stretch out all the aches and pains of his laborious work.

He collected his tools from the shack and dumped them tiredly in a wheelbarrow, then followed the paths of the graveyard that he did everyday, on his way to dig whatever pit some unfortunate soul would end up in today. It was a difficult job- he could use the big machines that they use nowadays to dig, but they always left horrible tyre tracks over graves nearby, mutilating whatever peace there was in the land. He'd been working there for far too long to want to do that, knowing full well that he'd rather put his back out a hundred times over than spoil the grass and land he worked so tirelessly to preserve. Every stone and plaque was important to him. That was what made him so good at such a dreary job- he cared about every plot, and made sure that any memorials stayed intact. No words on headstones would be left to disappear with weathering- every single one was still clear and easy to read, some even dating back from the seventeenth century. He took pride in his work.

On the way to today's job, Joe stopped at one of the farthest corners of the cemetery. Every week, on this exact Tuesday ever since Easter, he would stop and stare in amazement. Snow settled on the graveyard every seven days, completely ignoring the rest of the land and the fact that it was summer. A headstone- one of the oldest that was in this place- was always marked in the same way.

On the powdered ground in front of the stone lay flowers. No ordinary flowers, though- these were made completely of ice. The clear carvings glittered in the weak sunlight, and Joe admired them just as he did every Tuesday. The one thing he wished was that he could meet whoever left them. They were beautiful- they were delicate and precise, and only a very skilled craftsman would be able to create such a thing.

They were no random flowers, either. Every week the same- lilies.

One time, Joe had been so determined to see who had left them that he stayed up all night just watching the grave from the cover of trees. They must have come by very early, as Joe himself arrived at work and saw them at around six in the morning. But as hard as he had tried, he still missed the person. He'd felt a chill wind brush against the trees behind him, shaking the leafy branches. Snow had fallen delicately over the whole area, and he had been baffled. It was summer.

At the sound of the fierce wind picking up and snapping a twig behind him, Joe had turned his head away from the grave for a split second. As soon as he turned back to look, the ice flowers were already in place, and the griever was already gone. He swore at himself for missing it, but then sat in wonder at it all. The snow was just... impossible. It had turned out to be a boiling hot day later on, and it was well above zero degrees all night. And the amount of time it had taken for the person to leave the flowers... It was baffling. He'd only looked away for a second, and they were there. The person had been and gone in a second. That was_ impossible_.

Joe sighed at the sight, no longer upset that he didn't meet the person that night. Instead, he accepted that he was either going crazy, or something magic was happening. He'd like to think the latter. Something very special was happening with that grave, and he wasn't one to question it- who knew about afterlives and invisible people?

Joe continued to push the wheelbarrow full of tools, listening to the sweet humming of birds that chattered with each other across miles and miles of land. The impossible snow that was left once a week crunched under his feet and the wheel, and he smiled at the miracle of the flowers. He knew who left them, deep down he knew, having looked into the story behind the grave that was matched with three others, but part of his mind still wouldn't let him believe it. So he started to dig. 

Only a couple of weeks later, Joe didn't feel the same confidence he had done about the flowers before. Last Tuesday, there had been no lilies. This Tuesday there had been no lilies.

Not once in the months passed since they had first been showing up had a Tuesday been skipped by the mourner, but now there wasn't even a snowflake across his graveyard. It was unnerving, to say the least, and he couldn't help but shudder at the uncomfortable warmth that surrounded him. Something was wrong, very wrong, and he knew it, maybe even more than some of those who were supposed to be looking after the grieving visitor.

Jack Frost was gone, and he had a horrible feeling that he was dying.

* * *

_A/N: Hello! So happy to see you've reached the end of the Prologue, and are maybe perhaps enjoying it so far? I just want to let you know that as this is a prologue, the rest of the story is not about the same things. In case you hadn't guessed, it's all about the Guardians a few months after the defeat of Pitch (in the movie). So, please, don't give up on the story if you didn't like this one chapter- the rest is different! It has lots of loopdy-loops, twist, turns, tears, laughs, shock and all sorts... A quick warning- later, there will be spoilers ahoy! But I presume everyone here has seen the film :) See you soon, I hope! Reviews are very, very welcome, any time, any day. ~Emily!_

* * *

_**This story is dedicated to C.M.**_  
She has been a devoted supporter of this story and introduced me to ROTG, along with T.W, which I can never thank them enough for. She has always been a wonderful friend and partner in crime, and hearing (well, internet hearing) her squeal every time I update makes me giddy beyond belief! Seeing her comment on each chapter in excited capital letters never fails to delight me, and she's just amazing.  
My constant friend, always there for a chat, who's one of the sweetest people I know. Thanks for everything, C, I wish I could express my feelings better in writing than that ^.  
Many thanks also to all my friends who've supported me, and S.A.M, my little Bunny!

* * *

_(Here's the boring bit...)_

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Rise Of The Guardians or any of the characters therein it, all rights go to those at DreamWorks and William Joyce. I am merely running around in the playground of the writers, thoroughly enjoying myself! This applies to all other chapters within this Fic, from beginning to end.  
This fic can get quite violent and dark, so all I can say is...

_You have been warned..._


	2. Settled

'Nobody's seen or heard anything of Pitch lately then?' North asked, stood at the head of a long table lavishly covered with treats and toys, his thick Russian accent reverberating around the festive hall. The Guardians were all assembled around it, some Yetis and Elves occasionally wandering through looking busy.  
They had all decided to stay at the Pole for a while after Pitch had been defeated, in case he tried any dirty tricks and to make sure that the children who had stopped believing in them had restored their faith. It had been several months since Easter and Pitch Black's defeat, and- luckily- nobody had seen or heard a single thing about him since then.

'Not a whisper.' the Tooth Fairy said gleefully, clapping her hands. During the day, Tooth would have to go back to the Tooth Palace to keep an eye on the fairies and to keep up her duties, but generally she was very good at keeping her work and social life with the other Guardians in balance. Sandman was the same, but he didn't have quite as much free time as her as it was always night time somewhere in the world. He made a few pictures above his head of good dreams, and one of the nightmare horses that then sunk into a puddle of sand. By this he meant that children hadn't even been having nightmares recently.  
North was busy- he was all year round- but not as much, as Christmas was still a few months away yet. Bunnymund was even more relaxed, as Easter was only a little under a year away, which gave him time to wander his warrens and paint eggs as beautifully as he possibly could. Jack Frost was always busy, even though it was summer in most countries. He had Australia to deal with, but that was pretty much it- and Australia doesn't get a lot of snow, so even there he didn't have much of a job. Luckily for all of Guardians, he had eased up on being one and fitted quit comfortably into his role. Everyone had a room at the Pole, and they often stayed over to be with each other. It was sort of like they were a family.

'Good!' North grinned, and he laughed heartily from his belly. 'Then we can get on with our jobs!'  
Jack stared at the table, deep in thought. He hadn't spoken at all during this meeting, but the others took no notice of it as he was often distant and had days when he barely said a word. His moods changed rapidly, but it was to be expected when, technically, he was still only a fourteen year old. It seemed he was the only person in the world having bad dreams.

The Guardians continued on to other pressing issues, chatting about how the children were doing and how prepared they were for their holidays. Production was going well, and after they began to talk casually, they decided they had no more to say and broke the meeting.  
Everybody was tired, but Jack was the only one who would sleep tonight. As Guardians, they didn't need sleep that often, and generally it was a luxury that they took when they had the time. Instead, they carried on with their work to bring joy to the children, except Jack, who had little to do and had that extra time for sleep. The world of slumber seemed to have a grip on him at the moment, and he had tried to shake it off with a freak snowstorm in Russia, but not even fun seemed to kill his tiredness. It was coming up to ten o'clock when they broke their meeting.

'Sandy, make those dreams good tonight!' North bellowed. Sandman waved a salute with two fingers at him, and flew out a window into the darkness.  
'Tooth, get some rest.' He held her by her shoulders, and she lowered her head as if she was ashamed. 'You've been working nonstop for weeks now- get some sleep and you'll feel better for it.' She nodded slowly in agreement, then turned towards the door Jack was just about to walk out of.  
'Jack?' North asked. The cold teenager turned his head, keeping it low, but did not respond. 'Are you alright?'

'Perfect.' Jack forced a smile onto his face, swinging his staff over his shoulder and putting one hand in the pocket of his hoody. He turned away and walked out the door, and North and Tooth looked at each other with concern.

'Teenage angst I guess.' She smiled sweetly, and North chuckled. 'See you tomorrow.' And with that, she flitted out the door.


	3. Troubled Sleep

Jack lay in his bed, trying as hard as possible to go to sleep because he knew it always stopped him from getting to sleep. He could admit it to himself- he was afraid of sleeping- but never to the other Guardians. With sleep came darkness, and darkness was the first thing he knew as Jack Frost. Every night for the past month or so he had been feeling more and more tired, always needing sleep but never finding peace in it. Every night his frost covered room looked like it didn't glisten as much, as if darkness was taking over. Tonight was the worst- he could barely see a thing in the room, especially as the moon was hidden behind clouds. He tried to fight it, telling himself that this darkness was not the darkness of death, that it was just night. He turned over onto his side to face the door, and he stared at it with as much concentration as he could muster up. Orange light leaked through the cracks around the frame, and the floor held a puddle of light that only slightly illuminated the furniture. Jack watched it intently, reassuring himself that there was always light, and that even if he was in the dark there were rays of sunshine out in the world somewhere. He had never been afraid of the dark until he had got his memories back- that moment when he had become Jack Frost smothered him in deep fear, even though the Man In The Moon had given him hope. Everything was silent. Even the Yetis must have been resting tonight.

Slowly, the sensation of sleep crept into Jack's eyes, pulling them closed and forcing him into the darkness. While he fell into slumber, the light under the door disappeared and the room was plunged into deep blackness. Jack turned in distress, his eyebrows crumpling and his face frowning as the darkness took hold of him. A menacing laugh- an all too familiar laugh- echoed through the room, and he turned more and more, tossing from side to side. Black sand flew around the bed, swirling and scraping the walls with it's sharp pounding, until the voice spoke.

'Defeating me is not that simple...' it spoke, whispering with an antagonising tone. 'One by one, memory by memory, I will tear you apart...'

'**No!**' Jack shouted in his nightmare.

'And through you... I will get to them... The Guardians... And it will be all your fault... All because of your fear, because you're afraid...' it paused, teasing him. '..._Jack._' Pitch laughed.

**'NO!'** Jack sat bolt upright in fear, panting heavily. The room was empty, just as it was when he had fallen asleep, the orange light peeping under his door. He breathed and breathed, rubbing his head, then stood to his feet and headed towards the door. He pulled it open, looking all around, panicking that Pitch was still there. There was nothing. This was a rest night, and everyone was asleep. Suddenly, he heard a creak of wood coming from across the hallway he stood in. He flicked his head in surprise towards the sound and felt his heart fluctuate abnormally, lifting his staff in defence. Slowly, he crept towards the sound that had come from one of the rooms that belonged to the Guardians.

'Hello?' Jack whispered, not wanting to wake anyone if they were asleep. '_Hello?_' he said slightly louder, and the creak of floorboards stopped. He stood for a minute, just listening, clutching his staff with ferocity.

'Alright there mate?' Bunny asked with his thick Australian accent, and Jack turned himself round to the sound but instantly lowered his staff and acted normal.

'Yeah just... Night strolling.' Jack replied, barely hiding the fear in his voice.

'Well you have fun, try to get a bit of rest Frosty- you need it.' Bunny walked past him, lit up blue in the darkness, and patted him firmly on the shoulder.

'Now what in the hell does that mean?' Jack twisted himself round to face the over-sized rabbit, only just managing to pull himself back to his senses, but there was nothing there except a little pink flower sprouting from the floorboards.


	4. Shattered Memories

The next morning all the Guardians gathered around the table again for a quick conversation and to eat. There was food from all over the world, anything they fancied, and they found it incredible that it was like this every morning. Jack was being particularly moody after his bad night, his hood pulled so high over his head that they could barely see his face. He slumped in his seat and didn't touch a single bit of food- not even his favourites. Something wasn't right, and the others sensed it.

'Jack, is there something wrong?' Tooth asked gently, tilting her head to one side to try and get a better look at his face. He lowered his head even further, feeling the heat of everyone's stare on him.

'You know you can tell us anything, you can trust us.' North said, and Jack hugged his staff even more than normal.

'I'm fine.' Jack hissed, and the others flinched at the bitter sound of his tongue.

'Alright, we were only showing concern.' Bunny said aggressively, still struggling to get over certain personality traits Jack possessed.

Sandy made gestures with his hands for Bunny to calm down, but they were ignored as usual.

A small argument resulted between North and Bunny, but nobody paid any attention. Jack was fed up, so he got up, pushed open a window and flew straight out of it.

'Now look what you did!' North said while gesturing towards the open frame, one hand on his hip.

'You didn't help!' Bunny retaliated, then shivered. A fierce wind blew from outside and a drift of snowflakes swirled onto the floor. 'Shut that bloody window will ya? I'm freezing my paws off here!' Bunny rubbed himself and shuddered.

'Stop arguing you two!' Tooth interrupted, and Sandy went and shut the window. 'If you want to help Jack, when he gets back, apologise.'

Santa and the Easter Bunny nodded, wilfully agreeing to the Tooth Fairy's ideas. She was not to be messed with when she had made a decision or given orders.

* * *

Out in the freezing cold, Jack roamed the skies. The blistering wind was fierce on his skin, but he loved it- it gave him energy. He came across a cliff of snow, and decided to sit on it and have fun with the white powder. There was a lot of snowfall, but it didn't affect him in the slightest. The landscape was bleak yet beautiful, everything blinding white wherever he looked. He pulled up his crook and began to shoot random frost everywhere- not that this place needed anymore snow. His mind wandered and whirled, and he couldn't control his thoughts. It had definitely been Pitch last night, so he really should tell the others. But then there was a niggling feeling at the back of his mind that it had only been a dream and that there was no real danger of Pitch being in his head at all. No... He knew it wasn't a dream, and he tried to fight it, but had to admit that he was scared. He was feeling weak and ill, and he couldn't stop thinking about his past, about his memories before he was Jack Frost. His sister's voice rang in his ears all the time, and it crushed him that he hadn't found out about his family sooner. He couldn't see them, he could never see them, they were all dead now. It hurt. It hurt him deep down that he had had a whole life that had been taken away from him.

It was only then that he realised he had told the Guardians next to nothing of his memories, and they hadn't asked- he felt as if he really should tell them about who he was before and how he was chosen, but the opportunity had never come up. As he was thinking about an early memory of his, from when he was very young- a baby, almost- something very strange happened. He suddenly couldn't think of that memory, he couldn't even think of what the memory was about. It had just... disappeared from his mind. He suddenly jolted, and held himself in pain- it hurt, something hurt on the inside. He was being injured, becoming weak, and all he could think about was Pitch the night before- his laughing, his words.

"_One by one, memory by memory, I will tear you apart._"

He understood now, he could see what was happening, but he couldn't possibly tell the Guardians- Pitch had said that he would get to them too through Jack, if he was afraid. And he was afraid.

He bounced back up onto his feet, still in pain and not feeling up to using his powers, but he had to get back to the Pole. If anything happened out here, he was a goner. Jack flew as well as he could, but he kept losing power- he often began to plummet towards the ground even though he had his staff. He was nearly hitting the ground, and even though he managed to get himself back up higher, his strength always cut out soon after. More and more of his mind turned to black, memories disappearing from his head in seconds, each one causing him pain. It felt like a huge punch or a stab in the stomach or the heart, and this was when he would end up crashing into the snow below him. Finally, after what felt like hours of flying and falling, the workshop came into sight. This was the worst part of the whole trip- Pitch was in his mind, destroying his memories, and he got weaker and weaker by the second. The last few metres towards a window were his final push of strength, and he crashed through the glass- luckily not breaking it- straight into a big room with only one inhabitant- Bunny. Jack crashed into the floor, completely flopping onto the floorboards.

'You haven't been drinking have you Frostbite?' Bunny smirked, then remembered Tooth's orders. Jack was attempting to sit up, but it only resulted in his powers going mad and taking him up to the ceiling. 'Take it easy mate!' Bunny cried out, stumbling backwards from the sudden flight. Jack began to fall again, but managed to control himself so that he didn't break the floor. He landed at Bunny's feet, who quickly got his apology over with.

'Sorry about earlier...' Bunny said, just as Jack dropped his crook and fell forwards into his arms. The Guardian caught the cold boy, and suddenly realised something was terribly wrong.

'Jack, what the dingo happened?!' he almost shouted, turning the teenager's head up towards his own. Bunny gasped- Jack's face was rosy and flushed, and he felt warm to touch. He pulled the drowsy winter spirit up into his arms and ran towards the frosty bedroom, hoping and wishing with all his heart that he was not injured.

Bunnymund quickly arrived at Jack's room and placed him down gently onto his bed. He didn't want to leave his friend, but he had to get help, so he took the warrens for speed. Bunny popped up from the ground where North and Sandy were having a conversation, looking worriedly around until he saw them.

'What is it Bunny?' North asked, smiling joyously after an obviously funny story that Sandy had been telling.

'It's Jack...' he panted, and the other two's faces dropped into sudden concern. 'He's hurt.'

North stood quickly from his seat. 'Where?' he asked, heading towards the door.

'His room. Hurry!' Bunny said anxiously as he disappeared back down his burrow.


	5. Quick Author's Note- Skip If You Want!

Hello! It's your author here, Emily, and I just wanted to leave a quick note to mention a few things.

Well, if you've got this far, you're obviously at least slightly interested in my story- I hope- so I really am very grateful for it! Reviews and messages are always welcome, as I'm a pretty open person, so do contact me if you have any feedback (constructive criticism or opinions), so long as you're not too mean! :)

I've been having a lot of fun writing this fic, as I've been working on a different (very long) one for nearly a year now- and it's not even close to finishing! This was my break project, and it's been lovely to write about a different subject for a while- I've been writing for around a month now, so I'm quite far in :) I shouldn't be short of updates for a while yet ;)

Anyway, thank you so much for reading! I'm very excited to see how this goes!

Love from, Emily xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

IMAGINARY FRUIT CAKES FOR ALL OF YOU :D


	6. Recovering

When North arrived at the room and swung the door open, Bunny was already there. Lying on the bed was a limp looking Jack Frost, and North gasped at the sight of his pink cheeks.

'How hot is he?' he asked, striding quickly towards the bed.

'Too hot.' Bunny responded, and North put a big hand on Jack's head. He must have been at least fifteen degrees Celsius, much too warm for the winter spirit. Sandy hadn't followed him in, but he arrived soon after with Tooth as well- she flitted anxiously around the room, her face crumpled with concern.

'What happened to him?!' she said nervously, floating slowly down to the other side of the bed. She looked up at Bunny with her wide violet eyes and pleaded for an answer.

'I... I don't know, he just... Crashed through a window, landed on the floor, then suddenly flew up to the ceiling and came crashing down again. He landed in front of me, on his feet, then just... Dropped his staff and fell into me. Then I brought him here as quickly as I could.' Bunny said worriedly, rubbing his head and looking over his sick friend.

'You saw nothing before that? No fight, no injury?' North asked slowly, trying to calm the situation down.

'No, nothing.' Bunny replied.

'Jack?' Tooth tried to get his attention softly, coming closer to his face.

'Yeah?' he said weakly, looking at her with half closed eyes.

'What happened to you?' she held his hand, and nearly flinched at how warm he was.

'No... I can't tell you...' Jack replied with stubbornness. He shouldn't have come back, he should have stayed outside and let himself die so that the others wouldn't get hurt. If they stayed with him, the darkness would come again, and fear would seep into their minds too. He wouldn't let himself do that to his friends.

'What?' retorted Bunny, not understanding why he wouldn't tell them.

Sandy hovered over Jack and made a sad face with a question mark over his head, pulling a confused expression himself.

'I just can't... Okay?' Jack's tone felt angry.

'Are you angry about this morning?' North asked.

'No, no, of course not...' Jack turned himself onto his side as he felt the pain of losing another memory cut through him. 'Argh!' he moaned, curling himself up.

'Jack!' Tooth almost shouted she was so worried, and everyone edged in closer to him.

'No don't!' Jack shouted, coughing and holding up his hand to halt them. He created a gentle drift of snow above his head, and let it fall down onto him. It was cooling, but he ran out of power again and the drift came in short bursts until it stopped.

'Jack... You're losing your powers!' Tooth cried out, and tried to hug him or do anything but he pushed her away. She was upset.

'No!' Jack said again. 'No you mustn't! You have to leave... I'm just ill, I can get better myself. You can't be with me... I won't let you!' he shouted, and everybody was hurt. This wasn't like the Jack they knew, but they didn't understand that he was only trying to protect them.

'Jack, you're scaring us...' Tooth replied with genuine fear in her voice.

Jack was instantly on alert. If they were afraid, Pitch could get to them- he sat up and swung his legs round to stand up. The others asked him not to get up and tried to get him back onto the bed, but he refused and stood up. Slowly, he took one step then another, and on the third he fell face first into the floor.

'Seriously mate, what's up with you?' Bunny said while trying to help him up.

'Nothing, just a moment of weakness...' he shook the rabbit off his arm and stood up slowly, brushing himself down. He had an idea. 'I don't have my staff... It must be making me weak. Bring it to me and I'm sure I'll feel better.'

The others smiled at his acceptance of their help, and Bunny set off down his warren back to the room where he had crash landed. He looked around, and a cold drop of water landed on his nose, making him flinch and nearly fall over. He instantly looked up, only to see a large clump of ice frozen to the ceiling. It was melting, but strands of ice shot sideways out across the stone and icicles hung down. This was what happened when Jack couldn't control his powers. He quickly remembered what he was supposed to be doing and looked down to the floor. Jack's crook lay on the floor a few metres away from him, and he padded over to it and carefully picked it up. It no longer had ice covering it, and it was just a plain old stick with a curve at the end, not cold and not even slightly powerful feeling. Bunny tapped the floor twice with his foot and disappeared down the hole, leaving behind a little daisy. He arrived back in Jack's room to find him sat on the edge of his bed. Everyone looked up, and he smiled as he handed over the staff to its owner.

'Thank you.' Jack allowed himself to slightly smile, and everyone watched as his face got paler again.

'Jack you look better!' Tooth flitted excitedly and clapped her hands.

'I do?' he replied, holding his face in his hand.

Sandy nodded enthusiastically, some bright golden sand swirling around him because he was happy.

'Well then you can all stop worrying.' Jack said reassuringly. 'And stop being afraid.' he put emphasis on that last bit.

'Now you get some rest, and then you'll be right as snow!' North slapped his belly, and playfully pinched Jack's cheek, which the winter spirit did not look happy about.

'I'll be in to check on you later!' Tooth whispered, clasping her hands under her chin lovingly. She really was very maternal.

'Tooth!' North shouted from the hallway, knowing she would stay behind. She smiled at Jack and flitted out of the room, Bunny following behind.

'Bunny...' Jack reached out a hand, then pulled it back in. The Easter spirit turned around to answer to his name, and Jack continued shyly. 'Thanks for... You know, saving me and all...'

'Anytime, Frostbite.' Bunny smiled and left, closing the door behind him.


	7. Scheming

As soon as the others were gone, Jack gasped and fell back onto the bed, letting the colour return to his cheeks. He had had to use as much strength as possible to bring his face back to it's normal colour, fighting against the pain inside of him to make him look pale. He smiled at his acting, impressed that he had convinced them so well that he felt better after his staff was returned to him. In actuality, he was still just as bad as before, only he wanted to get them out and away from Pitch. He dreaded the moment that would come later on when he would have to pretend he was back to normal when Tooth returned, which would be even harder. He had to convince himself that he had enough strength to do it. Luckily, Pitch hadn't attacked another of his memories while he was putting on his show, as he wouldn't have been able to control his agony in front of them and the game would be up.

He thought long and hard in his delirious state, wondering what made this happen. He guessed a few things, probably correctly. Pitch had obviously got to him through darkness, and that's why he had suddenly become afraid of it. He was destroying everything that Jack was and ever had been, and he was terrified that he would lose his memory of everything and that he would become a hollow shell, or even nothing. Who knew what would happen to him if he lost his memories. He was dying, being killed from the inside, and he knew that if the others found out they'd get scared and Pitch could kill them too. But if he didn't tell them then he would die, and then maybe they'd be even more afraid than if he had told them. It was a situation he couldn't win at, and he tried as hard as he could to weigh up the good and the bad in each possible scenario. Nothing seemed to work, and in his head all he could see was the same ending- the other Guardians being attacked and killed, then the children losing belief.

Another Dark Age was coming, and Jack felt hopeless to stop it.

* * *

Once the Guardians were a few corridors away from Jack's room where he couldn't hear them, North turned to the others with great importance.

'We must hold emergency meeting right away- my office, so that if he needs us will not be hard to find.' he said and nodded, holding up five fingers to signal that they should be there in five minutes. They all went away in separate directions so as not to arouse suspicion.

Exactly on time, four Guardians were sat in Father Christmas's icy office. He locked the door several times behind them, ensuring that nobody would interrupt.

'Now, down to business.' North sighed, cracking his neck and sitting heavily into an armchair.

'What's wrong with him?' Tooth said with worry churning her voice.

Sandy made a question mark above his head, and looked cautiously over at everyone else.

'No, me neither Sandy.' North agreed, rubbing his chin in between his bushy beard. 'We all know Guardians don't get sick, but I don't think Jack realises we know. We need to think, and think fast.'

'Alright,' Bunny began, 'let's think of why he would want us away from him. He obviously didn't want us to help him, or to fuss over him.'

'That's just the way Jack is.' Tooth said.

Sandy made several pictures above his head, and North nodded. He had said that he thought Bunny was onto something.

'Yes, is definitely out of character for him to be so aggressive and hurtful.' North stroked his beard. 'He's hiding something, perhaps?'

'Oh yeah!' Bunny sat up as he suddenly remembered the events of the night before. They had seemed insignificant until now. 'Last night, I was up painting eggs, when I heard something from down the hall. It was too muffled for me to understand, but I went to have a look. I watched as Jack came out of his room, and he was looking all around and panting. Something had happened. I followed him as he went towards our rooms, and if I remember rightly- as it was pretty dark- he was crouching and tiptoeing, his crook held out as if he was going to attack. I interrupted before he caught me, and he said he was night strolling.' Bunny stopped, then his eyes suddenly widened as he realised something.

'What?! What is it?' North demanded to know.

'He looked and sounded... Afraid.'

Everyone sat back in concern, putting their heads in their hands and thinking.

'Oh Jack...' Tooth sunk, barely stopping herself from crying.

Sandman made the profile of a face they knew too well, then let it collapse into his hair. He slumped onto the floor, no longer floating.

'This must be why he's been acting weird recently... Why didn't we realise sooner?' Tooth sobbed, and North held her hand comfortingly. 'We could have done more for him if we had noticed...'

'No Tooth, that is wishful thinking.' North squeezed her hands tighter. 'We know now, so we can help him. We just have to work out how.'

'But we're not even certain if it is Pitch!' Bunny interrupted. 'We have to get our facts straight before we do anything.'

'Why don't we just ask him?' North suggested.

'No, he wouldn't tell us anything, especially if he thinks we'd be in danger if he did.' Tooth replied.

'What choice do we have?' Bunny began to pace the room. 'If he won't tell us, we'll never know for sure. He has to admit to something, it's the only way.'

Sandy hovered over to him, standing by his side firmly.

'We can at least try.' North sighed, giving in to the idea.

'I'll do it.' Tooth volunteered. 'I'm supposed to be going to check on him anyway, so I can keep the act up that he's ill.'

'Good thinking!' North crossed his arms, approving of the idea.

'Wait a tick, as it hasn't been long since we left and we need to think of how we can get answers out of him without him realising it's set up.' Bunny sat down again.

'Yes, let's think of some clever ways to get him talking!' Tooth smiled, happy at their plan but still concerned for her friend. It was going to be a long discussion.


	8. Facing Fear

Jack lay still on his bed, his heart racing and his cold blood pumping around his veins, becoming warmer every minute. He worried for himself- he had tried to use his powers, but they were fading fast. Pitch destroyed memory after memory, and in no particular order either- he would lose a childhood one, then one from only a couple of years ago. The only pattern Jack noticed was that his strongest memories were the ones that were not being killed off easily- family celebrations, his death, meeting the Guardians and becoming one were all memories that hadn't been attacked. But it was an easy guess that the more he was afraid and the more memories he lost, the more vulnerable those vital moments in his life were. He lay there in fear- not of what Pitch would do to him, but what he would do to the others. Jack would never wish harm on any of them- not even Bunny.

As Jack fought his internal battle, black sand and darkness oozed from under the bed. It spread out across the floor, climbing the walls with deathly silence and menacing intention. He didn't notice it until every inch of his room was covered in it- the windows no longer let in light and the lamp on the wall suddenly sparked and went out. Jack opened his eyes at the sound, only to find he couldn't see a thing- he held his hands up in front of his eyes and wiggled his fingers, but he saw no movement there. This was as dark as dark got.

'PITCH!' he shouted, sitting up with difficulty. 'Show yourself! For once, stop hiding in the dark!'

Pitch's echoing laugh could be faintly heard from every direction, disorientating Jack. 'Oh, but the shadows are the cosiest places.' he said creepily, and the boy searched around him for his staff.

The wind that the movement of the sand created was strong, and it blew Jack's hair all over the place. 'Come out here and finish me! You can have everything I am, you can have all of me, just don't hurt the others!' he tried to bargain, but this was the Boogeyman.

Pitch laughed again, louder and more demonically. 'Protecting your precious Guardians? You're too good for them Jack, but we've had this conversation before. I'm serving the justice you deserve for crushing me, by killing you and the others. The world will fall into despair and there will be nothing left but hate and fear. You'll be the first to go, the one who'll suffer most, and the one whose fault it will be. Everyone will die, and that's all thanks to you, Jack.' he laughed more, and Jack felt himself lift from his bed, floating without doing it himself. The black sand scratched at his legs and cut his ankles, but that was the least of his worries. He began to move, and before he could do anything they were travelling upwards at high speed. After a minute or even less of skyrocketing, he came to a halt in the darkness he was in.

Jack felt something hit his leg, and he knew instantly that his staff had been thrown at him. 'Really, I ought to make it a fair fight.' Pitch said it as if it was fair, which it blatantly wasn't.

Jack had to shield his eyes as the dark withdrew from around him, the bright sunshine nearly blinding him after being in black. He squinted his eyes and looked all around, managing to stand to his feet. He was stood on a huge black sand platform above the clouds, the Pole a long way beneath his bare toes. The sky was pale and blue and fluffy white clouds drifted around them- Pitch's magic was making a storm, pulling everything around them into a swirling tornado. Jack felt the thin air tighten his lungs, and he leant down to pick up his staff. Stood opposite him was a sight he thought he'd got rid of for at least a year after Easter, yet there stood Pitch Black. His hands were held behind his back, drifts of sand and tiny nightmare horses prancing around him aggressively.

'Shall we begin?' he taunted, and lifted a hand to shoulder height. He snapped his fingers and Jack instantly began to fall, the surface he had been stood on completely disappearing beneath his feet. He chased after his staff, managing to grab onto it and fly back up. This was going to need all the strength he had left, but at least he had a chance of stopping Pitch from going any further with his plan- even if it meant making the ultimate sacrifice.


	9. Evading The Guardians

'Jack?' Tooth called through the door of the Guardian's room, knocking gently three times. There was no response. 'Jack?' she called again, hoping he wasn't... No, she wouldn't let herself think of that.

Realising Jack wasn't going to answer and that something bad might have happened, she pulled and pushed as much as she could on the door, but he had locked it on the inside.

'Jack open this door at once!' the rainbow fairy called out in anger, but once again she was greeted with silence. She took a few steps back and a few breaths in before running towards the heavy wood as if she were playing a game of American Football, then attacking it with her side. It instantly fell off it's hinges into the room, some dust from the broken walls floating around. She rubbed her arm, and looked around anxiously for a sign of Jack. She coughed and spluttered as the dust got in her lungs and eyes, searching the room for the Winter Spirit, who was surprisingly good at hiding himself in small spaces- as they had found out during a childish game of hide and seek a few weeks before. As the clouds of brick dust settled, Tooth accepted that he was not here. She instantly flew back out of the room and down a few corridors, shouting for the other Guardians. They answered quickly, all running towards her from their hiding spots.

'Well?' Bunny asked.

'He's gone!' Tooth said, turning towards the room to show everyone.

'Gone?' North said questioningly, as they all jogged along festively decorated corridors. 'What do you mean "gone"?'

'As in "he's not there" gone!' Tooth replied as they all entered.

Everyone stopped still in their tracks. Tooth hadn't noticed before as there had been clouds of dust fuzzing her sight, but now they could all see the destruction. Jack's bed was snapped in two, broken straight down the middle, and the lights had been smashed. Bits of glass and splinters covered the floor, all coated in a layer of dust themselves- all the glass from the window had been smashed out, just like in the movies when someone screams. All that was left of the curtains was tattered dirty rags, and the furniture was tarnished and abused. Every inch of wall and ceiling was scratched and marked, and the paint was often shredded to show the colour of bare walls underneath.

The Guardians all wandered slowly around, North and Bunny minding their feet on the treacherous ground.

Sandy skimmed the damaged walls with his fingertips, then grabbed everyone's attention to tell them it was sand damage- he had seen it done by his own dream sand before.

'Yes Sandy, I don't see what else it could be.' North rubbed his eyes tiredly. 'I have bad feeling about all of this- I can sense it, in my belly.'

The others lost hope- North's gut instincts were always right.

Tooth abruptly gasped, clasping her hands over her mouth. 'Jack!' they had all been in a daze looking at the room and trying to work out what had happened, making them completely forget about their friend. They all ran to or out the window, Tooth frantically searching around the Pole but finding nothing and returning back to them shaking her head.

Directly above their heads, a black gale blew in the sky. Jack and Pitch fought with ferocity in the eye of the storm cloud, great booming noises emanating from the black sea of sand. Light clapped with blinding force, and to most it would look like a plain thunder and lightning storm. The crashing above shook the earth, and the Guardians all looked up.

'The sleigh!' Bunny shouted over the din of noise and began to run towards the sleigh shed. 'Tooth, you too!' he called as she was about to fly up into the sky.

They all disappeared into the workshop again while attempting to keep an eye on the sky- they wouldn't miss a thing. The elves around their feet hustled and bustled around, trying to get the sleigh ready in double the time they normally did. The Guardians clambered into the vehicle- even Bunny, without persuasion. North called for everyone to get out of the way as they were about to take off, but not many listened. The reindeers started and they felt the magical lift of the carriage as it began to build energy up to take off. They shot out of the workshop and into the ice caverns, but North was driving through them so fast they could barely see anything around them. When they came out into the light, the first thing they saw crushed them. In the sky, beneath the storm, stood Pitch on one of his black clouds. In one of his fists he held the front of Jack Frost's hoody, holding his limp frame up like a trophy.

'JACK NO!' Tooth screamed at the top of her lungs.

Pitch balanced on the edge of his nightmare cloud, holding Jack in one hand, then simply dropped him off the edge. Jack's staff was gone and he was no longer conscious, so he plummeted towards the ground as gravity took it's full effect.

'NO!' North shouted too, and the others were too shocked to do anything.

The Guardians began to speed towards the fight, but they were too far away- they were now on the other side of the Pole from where Jack's room was, and the storm was ahead of them rather than above them. They watched on in horror as Pitch's nightmare horses galloped towards the separated Guardian, trapping him inside their herd as they fell with him. North directed the sleigh up to get a better look of everything- when they got to a certain altitude just below the cloud barrier, they stopped mid-flight. There was nothing that could be done- although they couldn't see him, Jack hit the ice with a terrible crack. A pulse of ice energy blasted from where he had landed, pushing away the nightmares- if only for brief seconds. It was like a huge explosion, some kind of release of Jack's powers causing it. They felt the air itself shake, and a blinding black snowstorm started attacking them. They couldn't see through the blizzard, but they knew in which direction Pitch had been, and they bravely strode towards it. The hatred for him burned so fiercely in them, nothing could stop them.


	10. Battling Against Darkness

'PITCH!' Jack shouted again, flying full speed upwards.

'Yes?' he replied right in Jack's ear, making him flinch and flip. His enemy was not there, and Pitch was surprised he still fell for little tricks like that. Jack looked all around him, trying to make out a figure in amongst the mass of swirling clouds. He knew he didn't have long until the Guardians found his room empty or heard the fight, so he had to find some way to end this before Pitch could get to them.

As he thought about this, Jack realised he was barely paying any attention to what was happening around him, so Pitch struck his first blow. A solid pole of nightmare sand hit him square between the shoulder blades, launching him into the thinner air above. Coughing and attempting to get the air back into his lungs, he swivelled and dive bombed down towards Pitch. Yet again, he was stronger, and Jack really did lose all hope of winning this fight. He used as much of his strength as he could to create ice lightning, directing it straight towards his foe, groaning as he did so. The exertion from just that attack alone was enough to weaken him considerably, and although it had seemed like a victory when Pitch was overwhelmed by a wave of ice, there were soon black tentacles whipping at the blue frost.

More and more sand flew around, the whole sky filling with Pitch's magic. The trouble was that Jack had nothing to land on- he always had to be flying, unlike Pitch who had platforms and clouds to catch him. The storm closed in around the winter Guardian, and he had to think fast- he spun around on the spot in mid-air, gaining speed and becoming a blur to anyone watching. As the nightmares finally engulfed him, a huge explosion crashed and shook from the black tornado creating dark, icy rain. The blast hurled Pitch backwards, but he balanced himself and created a cloud to catch himself on. By now Jack was running on his adrenaline- he had barely any fight left in him after losing his memories, so to recover slightly before another attack he decided to buy himself some time.

'Why me?' he shouted into the darkness that engulfed him, panting and trying to get his breath back. 'Why did you choose me and not one of the other Guardians, or the children? What is it about me that you want!?'

Pitch laughed knowingly, evilly, and appeared on one of his nightmares in front of Jack. 'Oh, Jack, Jack, Jack! Why I chose you!' he paused, pinching his thin black lips together. 'You're weak. Weaker than the others, weaker than some of the children. You have a fear that will never leave you, and what an easy way into that scared little Guardian that fear was. You're still afraid of the same thing... That you'll never be seen, and never know why you were put here the way you are!'

'Oh yeah?' Jack shouted back at him, his eyebrows furrowing. 'Because that's not true! I'm not afraid anymore, not of being invisible, not of my purpose! I worked it out, I know why I'm here, why I'm the way I am! I know that although millions of children will never believe in me, at least there's a couple out there that can see me! One child would be enough! I am here to protect each and every child, whether they believe in me or not! That is my purpose!'

'Oh, a Guardian's duty- protect this, save that, for eternity blah blah BLAH!' Pitch snapped, still chuckling at himself. 'That doesn't mean your fear is gone, Frost. But even if I were wrong- which I'm not- there is still something you are scared of, and that is the terror that let me seep into your mind. I crawled through the shadows for months and months, trying to find someone or something that was afraid so that I could be strong again, but there was nothing. Not a single fear!'

'What a shame for you, you poor thing.' Jack teased, happy that he had now managed to gain some strength again.

'But then I thought, why hold the children of the world in fear, why have the whole world, when I could have_ just __**one**__ Guardian_?'  
Pitch lowered his head so that he had to look up to see Jack- an evil look. 'Think about it! The power that you wield... If I could destroy it, I could destroy the hope with it. I could kill the other Guardians- if they're afraid of what I'm doing to you, then there's no escape for them. I can seek out even the smallest of fears and make it grow.  
So I found my way to the shadows in little Jack's room. There you lay, sleeping peacefully, until I made it darker. Every night you became more and more afraid of the blackness, so every night I gained more power and made it darker and darker. What it is that makes you so afraid of the darkness I don't know, but I really don't care either.' Pitch threw a ball of black sand at him as a surprise attack, but he dodged it just in time. Jack realised this meant that Pitch didn't actually see his memories... He only destroyed them, but he didn't know what they were.

'I will keep fighting you, Pitch!' Jack shouted, pulling an angry face.

'What's the use?' the Boogeyman responded happily. 'I'm in your head, Jack, and you can't escape your own mind!' he laughed and flew up further into the sky and away from the Pole.

'But my head is not their heads! You can kill me, but they will never stop fighting you!' Jack pointed down towards the ground, towards the Guardians. 'This ends now, Pitch!' he flew up at full speed towards his enemy, holding his staff as tightly as he could.

They began to fight again, throwing attacks at each other over and over again. Jack knew he didn't have the strength to defeat Pitch, but he had to put up a fight. If the Guardians tried to intervene, he would give in and let Pitch kill him. It was the only way to protect them.

* * *

After minutes of abuse, Jack found it difficult to stay upright. Just like when Pitch had tried to persuade Jack to join him, they made huge spiked sculptures out of ice and darkness. They would hover in mid air for a second before they fell to the ground below, smashing into the landscape. These were the crashing sounds that the Guardians heard from the Pole. A blizzard started to blow all around them, gale force winds battering them and everything below them too. The arctic sea lapped at the icebergs where there was water, crashing over the flats. The snow fell in blinding swirls and drifts, everything turning white- Jack was proud that he did this, and he kept it up. Pitch looked all around him, a tiny glint of fear shimmering in his eyes. He whipped black sand everywhere, blocking out the sun with a huge cloud that rapidly turned into a tornado.

'NOT THIS TIME!' Pitch shouted down to Jack, resisting the attack of ice.

The winter spirit threw snowballs playfully at him, hitting his face a few times while using his staff like a surfboard on air. If these were to be his last moments, they might as well be doing what he did best- fun. After all, that _was_ his centre.

Pitch scoffed in disgust that Jack was laughing and enjoying himself when this had been such a serious fight. '**FROST!**' he cried out in anger, wiping snow out of his face. Jack had disappeared from sight, and Pitch frantically searched for him through the snow. He was too annoyed to bother, so threw nightmares out in all directions to cut through and stop the snowstorm. Jack felt his powers dwindle after keeping up the blizzard. He felt as if he was empty, missing vital parts of himself. He looked below and saw the Guardians all burst out of his broken bedroom window, watching Tooth search worriedly around for him. He had to act fast, and he knew it. Pitch was throwing up a hissy fit bigger than ever before, creating enormous nightmare clouds, the horses racing across the blank sky. They seemed to stain the fresh air, as if they left behind a stench.

Jack smiled softly at himself, tears welling in his eyes as he accepted what was going to happen next, then shot upwards towards the darkness that he feared so greatly. He had never been happier than in these last few months, and he was glad for everything that had happened. The deep black clouds engulfed him into nothingness, and he felt as if the Man In The Moon had stared down at him for one final time, and he wasn't scared anymore.


	11. Falling To The End

'PITCH I SWEAR I WILL GET YOU, YOU STINKING-' Bunny screamed into the sky as him and the other Guardians flew upwards in North's sleigh.

The Boogeyman simply laughed, and sent a shot at them. North pulled on the reins with all of his might to turn the Reindeer sideways, and they had to regain their balanced footing on the air.

'TOOTH, SANDY, GET JACK!' North shouted, and the fairy and little golden man nodded in agreement. They hurriedly darted out of the sleigh and dived down to where the winter spirit had landed, dodging occasional flights of black sand.

Meanwhile, North and Bunny headed straight towards the huge storm in the sky. Pitch laughed in the distance, but the Guardians hadn't realised how serious the situation was. They tried to break the edge of the tornado with the sleigh, but they were tossed sideways and splinters of broken wood from the front of the magic carriage flew up into the swirling mass of darkness. They couldn't get inside, and only seconds later the two other Guardians joined them, slightly ruffled. Tooth had lost some feathers and many were torn on her legs, and Sandy had a slash on his arm that had turned his sand black. It slowly regained it's former golden brightness, but they had obviously been attacked with some force.

'NORTH!' Tooth yelped with alarm in her voice.

'WHERE IS JACK?!' he replied back, attempting to steer the sleigh at the same time as having this serious conversation.

'WE CAN'T GET TO HIM!' she screamed. 'THERE'S A MASSIVE DOME OF NIGHTMARES COVERING THE AREA- WE TRIED TO GET THROUGH IT, BUT IT'S TOO TOUGH!'

'SAME AS US THEN!' Bunny clutched the sides of the wood as they spun violently.

'WHAT DO WE DO?' Tooth asked desperately.

'WE GO IN FOR KILL!' North answered enthusiastically. He lashed on the reins and the sleigh sped up even more than before, heading directly towards the top of the hurricane. They were going to try getting in from the top.

As they reached a ridiculous height they spotted Pitch below them, stood in the eye of the storm. He looked up, but smirked again. He knew everything anyone planned. 'YOU REALLY THINK I WOULDN'T BE DONE WITH YOU BY NOW IF I HAD HAD THE INTENTION TO ATTACK YOU?' he exclaimed, then cackled. 'WHAT I AIMED TO DO IS COMPLETE, SO YOU CAN HAVE YOUR PRECIOUS FROST!' and with that, Pitch stopped the whole black sand storm. It all disappeared towards him, until finally he vanished himself. They were left with a bleak landscape, a huge snowstorm rolling over them. It was much quieter, the former peace returned.

North was still facing the right way- down. He whipped the Reindeer into action and the four Guardians sped towards their friend.

* * *

Jack clenched his staff as tightly as he could, almost breaking it he held it so fiercely. He flew at full speed upwards into the darkness, facing his fear full on. He heard Pitch's angered screeches, and he stopped when his enemy came into sight. The Boogeyman was scanning every inch of sky for Jack, but he only noticed him when sparks of freezing water lit up bright blue shot out from below. The spirit of fun relied on the element of surprise, and a tiny feeling inside of him made him feel hopeful that he could defeat Pitch. He shut his eyes and focused solely on forcing all of his energy and power into his staff. He held his breath and pushed everything he had into the crook until it felt as if it was a bottle that had been filled to the rim- there was no room left for any more, and he opened his deep and pale blue eyes with meaning.

Shouting and flying towards Pitch, who looked down on him without moving, Jack used all of the strength he had left to send a shockwave of ice, snow and wind. It blew all of the sand and snow away from around them, the force of this attack beyond anything either of them had encountered before. Pitch was thrown back, but he caught himself and laughed. The sky thickened around them again, the blackness creeping it's way back. Jack was only thinking about his attack, and barely took any notice of the retaliation. He shot the final dregs of power left in his staff in one huge throw, which Pitch met with an open hand and a smirking face. Explosions and crashes echoed around them, thunder and lightning booming and deafening. This was it- this was all Jack had.

Pitch held up against the ice, and smiled to himself as he watched the nightmare sand push the snow away. Beams of light and dark flew out in all directions, and Jack's face twisted in acceptance of his fate.

'NOT GOOD ENOUGH, JACK!' Pitch shouted at the top of his lungs over the din around him. He was finally going to win.

Jack breathed in deeply, then shut his eyes tight. His attack ran out, and there was no fight left in him. He had pushed himself to his physical limit, and for no prevail over evil. He blocked out the sound of what was happening around him, instead thinking only about the people he loved.

He heard Bunny arguing with him, North laughing heartily, Tooth clapping her hands and getting excited about being back in the field. He saw Sandy telling a funny story and beautiful things he had seen- glaciers, sunsets, sunrises, canyons, sea views... Everything. He felt the freezing breeze of winter bite at his cheeks, cooling him and refreshing his energy.

Jack let darkness surround him. The black sand hit him full on his chest, and as he felt the grains beat him into senselessness he heard the voice of his sister.

_'Jack, I'm scared!_' she shrieked, and he smiled at the memory. He had saved her, and he felt proud. He dropped his staff into the oblivion of the Arctic, somehow still upright even though he was as limp as a ragdoll. He grinned, then began to fall- not only through air, but through the thick curtain of beyond.

'_Jack!_' he heard her cry once more, only this time she wasn't scared. She was laughing, and he laughed with her.

His last feeling was that he was somehow home- at peace. It felt like someone held him tight in their warm arms, as if he were a child again. Down into the blackness Jack fell, down and down, until he felt and thought no more.


	12. Searching For The Fallen

'JACK?' Tooth called out into the blinding white landscape, frantically searching the ice and snow for her friend.

'JACK?!' North shouted too, but again there was no response. What could they expect when they had seen him fall like that? They tried to persuade themselves that he was fine, that it was just one of those times they gave in a little.

'WHERE ARE YA, FROSTBITE?' Bunny cried, trying not to let out that he cared about Jack.

There was only a certain extent of land that had been covered by that dome, so Jack had to be there somewhere. Sandy used his dream sand to try and find someone who was sleeping, but the search was useless through snow like this- at least that's what he hoped. An imprint in the settled snow made Bunny look again, and he rushed over to the hole. He leant down to see what it was, then picked it up in his paws. 'Guys!' he called out. Everyone gathered around quickly. In Bunny's hands lay Jack's staff- not broken, not damaged, just without it's owner. He could be almost anywhere within at least a mile in each direction.

Sandy touched the wood and his senses suddenly pricked up. Jack had only held this recently, and somehow Sandy could pick up on something from that contact. He looked sceptically around with squinted eyes, then he began to follow this newfound power. The other Guardians followed and the blizzard started to settle- there was nothing messing with the environment above anymore, so the weather slowly returned to normal. They followed Sandy for about five minutes until they saw before them a huge crater of ice. It looked like it steamed, glistening in the pure sunlight. The sudden drop fell in jagged spikes down to a pit, where in the centre a thin young man lay too still.

'Jack!' Tooth whimpered in concern, clasping hands over her mouth. She flew towards the figure, the first to arrive by his side.

Jack lay on his front in an awkward position, his limbs bent and splayed out. He was barely visible because the heavy storm had covered him in a thick layer of snow. The blizzard around them stopped, and they could now see miles into the distance. Everyone looked in horror at the boy below them, and it was Tooth that sat down next to the new Guardian. She gently pushed on his side, and he budged slightly with the movement, before rolling back to his original position after she had taken away her hand.

'Jack...?' she begged that he was alright, forcing herself not to get tearful. She knelt next to him, and took the decision to move him. As carefully as she possibly could, Tooth held Jack's shoulder and pulled on it, forcing him onto his back. She gasped and the others flinched.

'We have to do something!' she flitted upwards, darting around as if she would find help in the freezing wasteland.

'Tooth, Tooth, stay calm!' North tried to relax her, but he was worried enough himself that his voice quivered when he spoke.

Jack's back had looked fine, but he hadn't been attacked from behind. There was barely anything left of the front of his hoody, only a plain white t-shirt poking through the navy fabric- and even most of that was ripped to show his pale skin. The nightmare sand had completely destroyed the top, but that was only clothes damage. His skin was torn and deep blood stained his front- there was a gash across his arm that had sliced down deep, and his sleeve was wet with blood. His face was cut too, and his snowy hair was reddened in a few places. He was bashed everywhere, the bruises deep purple and dark blue, and nothing could hide that he really had been beaten to a shadow of himself. The ground snow next to him was dyed deep crimson, and they wondered how they hadn't noticed the smear of blood spread across the ice. His ankles looked like they had been scratched hundreds of times by tiny knives, cut up and sore looking.

Sandy floated above Jack, looking closely at his face. He reached down with one of his little hands, gently placing his palm flat on the centre of the boy's chest and slightly to the left. He was concerned when, despite the fact that he had just touched one of the worst injuries Jack had sustained, he didn't even stir. Not even his tightly shut eyelids flinched.

The others noticed what Sandy was doing and closed their eyes in hope. It took more than a minute- a minute of dread for them all- before he made a happy face above his head. The others, not able to hear him, still had their eyes shut. He flicked snow at them, and they saw a thumbs up from the little golden man. He made a picture of a muscly arm, then made it skinny and scrawny- the others had only seen this once before, but they knew it meant "weak".

'Back to Pole, NOW.' North boomed, but wasn't quite sure who he should ask to take Jack. He gestured for Sandy to try.

The Sandman used his golden dream sand to lift Jack into the air so that he wouldn't have to carry him himself, but it was like forcing the same ends of magnets together. The sand simply wouldn't go near Jack, no matter how hard Sandy tried to push it. This had never happened before. Everyone looked over worriedly, and Tooth offered to try. She went over to pick him up, ever so gently sliding her palms under his back- she had the strength to lift him, and she did, but her wings stopped fluttering. He felt heavy and back breaking, and her wings simply wouldn't move. She couldn't fly.

'What is happening...?' North could barely speak.

Sighing, Bunny trudged over to where Tooth had put Jack down again and lovingly lifted the teenager into his fluffy arms. Nothing happened to Bunny, for some reason.

Everybody clambered back into the sleigh, Bunny holding Jack as securely as he could without injuring him any further. He had decided against his warrens for a change, and he sat without worrying about the flight at all.

'We need to get a move on.' Bunny said calmly. Jack lay loose in his hold, only light breaths leaving his lips in short rasps.

Without saying anything, North gathered up the reins in his fists and prepared the sleigh. Tooth and Sandy both watched the injured Guardian intently to make sure they always had an eye on him- he looked peaceful, and they happily guessed that he wasn't feeling any pain. Sleep was numbing. They took off into the pale sky, roaring through the wintery landscape and back towards the North Pole where they hoped to treat Jack.

* * *

As soon as the magical sleigh landed in the workshop, a couple of Yetis came bounding up with a tiny stretcher, which was in fact a children's toy for dressing up games.

'I'd rather not mate, no offense.' Bunny shook his head at the offer, preferring to carry Jack himself. The Yetis sighed and turned away, wandering off to do something else. It was only then that everybody noticed- in the workshop, every creature had stopped working. All the Yetis and Elves were peeking round the corners of tables to try and get a look at the injured Guardian. It was deathly silent, and the workers had to shuffle backwards to get out of the way- the Guardians felt they had never rushed like this in their lives, apart from maybe trying to get everything ready for Easter or Christmas.

They thought it best to take Jack back to his own room, even if it was further away than some other places they could use a bed. They thought he would welcome an environment he was used to. Luckily, North had asked the Yetis to tidy up in there, so there was now a new bed and furniture and they had replaced the windows. It looked nearly as good as new when they arrived, but Sandy nearly kicked the door down again because he was hurrying so much. Bunny practically ran through the doorway and into the bedroom- he stopped abruptly by the bed and adjusted Jack's position in his arms. He slowly placed the teenager down onto the soft mattress with the help of Tooth, who held his legs.

The Guardians paused to look at the Spirit of Fun, hoping he would mumble or move at least slightly in his sleep. He lay motionless and the slight rise and fall of his chest was only visible from close up. Nobody could do anything for a minute- what they saw before them was a situation they had never even had nightmares about. This was really happening, and it took a moment for them to accept that. Tooth took a gasp and held her hands to her mouth to try to stop herself from breaking down and becoming useless. It was as if this was the first time she had seen how badly Jack was hurt, and it was like a smack around the head with something metal and heavy.

'Come on, have work to do.' North said, pulling his trousers up. The room had an ensuite bathroom which they used for water. Towels and cloths were delivered by the workers of the Pole to help, and each Guardian was assigned to a different job. North and Bunny would get towels and water ready, Sandy would keep an eye on outside for Pitch and set up where they would all sit, and Tooth was put in charge of Jack. Knowing she had strong maternal instincts, they left her to somehow get his hoody and T-shirt off so that they had clear access to his injuries. She lay down towels and blankets underneath him, then used scissors to cut away bits of hoody she couldn't do anything else about.

'He's gonna be so mad that I cut this...' she whispered under her breath before she made the first snip.

Within a few minutes everyone had completed their jobs. They all gathered around Jack's bed, the whole of the front of his body stained red. Tooth had not taken off his T-shirt as she thought it would save her time, so she just cut a big rectangle where there had been damage to the fabric. Gently, North dabbed and washed Jack's wounds- he did not flinch nor complain in his slumber, and they wondered how deep in unconsciousness you had to be not to feel that kind of pain. Although they had managed to clean most of the blood off, the problem was that there were granules of nightmare sand stuck in his cuts, and they weren't going to come out anytime soon.

Surprisingly- and luckily- Jack had not sustained many gashes. There were two on the whole of his torso and that one on his arm, all of them quite small but reasonably deep. One was on his collarbone on the left side, the other just under his collarbone on the right side. The amount of blood had misled them into believing his chest had been mauled. He was bruised and battered, and that was going to be the worst thing when he woke up. _If_ he woke up, North couldn't help but think. He blocked it from his mind.

'He's getting hot again!' Tooth looked up at the others, her eyes wet. She had her hand on his forehead, and they all looked to his face- it was pink again, and he panted in his sleep.

'What do we do now?' Bunny asked. 'We've done everything we can do about his injuries.'

'Nearly everything.' Tooth continued. Now the cuts had stopped bleeding, they could patch him up. There was nothing else to be done at the moment, so Sandy got a flannel and soaked it in luke warm water for Jack's head. They had managed to get the white T-shirt off in order to wrap bandages around his chest to prevent any more bleeding or infection. They all watched him as he heaved breaths in and out of his lungs uncomfortably.

'It's hot in here...' Bunny puffed, then wandered over to the newly put in windows. He could only open them just a crack, but Jack needed more than that much fresh air. A furry fist burst through the clear glass, breaking the windows for a second time. A Yeti sighed in annoyance outside the door, obviously understanding what was happening. He had only just finished putting in the new ones.

North hurried and put the fire out the Yetis had built, cursing to himself in Russian. He had told them not to set fires in here! Tooth pulled blankets off the bed, trying to uncover Jack as well as she could. He needed to stay as cool as possible.

Everyone sat back down and stared at him, unsure of what to do. Sandy shivered, so fluffed out his sand coat so that it was thicker and crossed his arms. North pulled up his shoulders and rubbed his legs, and after a few minutes they could all see their breath in the room. A few Yetis came in with big coats and blankets and warm drinks for the Guardians, and they gladly accepted them. There were Elves and more Yetis at the doorway trying to peek in on what was happening, so North slammed the door in their faces. Everyone was snuggled up in their cozy blankets, sipping at steaming drinks and occasionally shivering, just watching Jack. They couldn't think of anything else to do, nor could they bring themselves to talk about what had happened or what they were going to do next. None of them understood why Pitch had left without a fight, but they knew it meant he had a plan- and it was working. Why did he target Jack?

There were a lot of unanswered questions, but they were left to repeat themselves endlessly in the Guardians' heads. They sat in silence for hours without moving, simply staring. Jack didn't even move a finger. He had not been improving, and nobody could tell if he had been getting worse. The day rolled into night, and they gradually began to slip into sleep. They agreed amongst themselves that they would take shifts watching him so that they could get some rest, as it had been weeks for some of them since they had slept- and Tooth hadn't stuck to her agreement with North.

'Sandy, you have night duties.' Tooth reminded the little man, who was often a bit forgetful when he had a lot on his mind. He nodded, and prepared himself to leave.

Tonight was North's turn, as he had slept the night before when all of his workers had too. The others reluctantly left the room to find the comfort of a warm bed, sighing at the events of the day.

'Long night for us, eh Jack?' North said softly when everyone else had gone, stroking the sleeping child's white hair carefully. 'Long night for us.'


	13. The Waiting Game

In the early morning, the other Guardians returned to Jack's room. He had not changed at all- he was still fast asleep and hadn't moved a single muscle. His temperature had gone up slightly, and as the morning progressed it rose. More bruises had come up, too, and the whole of his front looked like it had been hit with a massive hammer. They wondered how his ribs hadn't all broken, but guessed that was due to his immortality. Everyone stayed in there, wondering what to do.

During their lunch, the Guardians settled down in their chairs and ate hungrily. Bunny paced the room with a carrot in his mouth, thinking hard, and North asked him to sit down because he was stressing him out. Bunny was just about to retaliate with a witty comment, but he was interrupted by none other than Jack Frost.

'LILY!' he cried out loudly, and everyone jumped up to see what was happening. Jack had moved his head sideways, and his face was slightly turned in on itself- a concerned face. The Guardians looked at each other, hopeful that this meant he was healing.

'Who's Lily...?' Bunny asked gently, his features slightly twitching. Nobody answered.

Another hour passed, but Jack made no other outcry or movement. As the day ticked by, the Guardians became more and more worried. It was early evening when the Winter Spirit started to fidget in his sleep. He was feverish and sweaty, and he began to let out small distressed tones every so often. By midnight, Jack was tossing and turning and mumbling all the time, breathing too heavily and quickly. It was Tooth's shift, but the others didn't want to leave her alone. She insisted that they all go to bed when they started to nod off, promising that if anything happened she would wake them up. After much persuasion she managed to get them to leave, but a few Yetis stayed with her.

Tooth spent the whole night trying to cool Jack down, constantly wiping his forehead and his neck, speaking to him and singing comfortingly.

'Jack, please try to keep still!' she said, holding his wrists firmly as he squirmed about in the bed. 'You have to fight it Jack, fight what's hurting you! Please, just try!' she cried out, tears welling in her eyes. He didn't listen, and he continued to throw his head from side to side. She felt like giving up- she was working so hard and got nothing out of it. Finally she cracked.

Tooth left the cool flannel on Jack's forehead and folded her arms on his bed, burying her head in her feathers. She felt useless, and her emotions weighed down on her. It had been an exhausting few days.

Jack still tossed himself around, panting and panting, his face turning redder and redder. Tooth slipped the thermometer under his tongue, which he instantly spat out. She got him to keep it there after four attempts, and she started timing. She watched in horror as the red liquid climbed up the numbers, reaching the thirties. After the time was up, it measured in at thirty four degrees Celsius. He wasn't getting any better.

The morning came slowly, but with a welcomed light. Jack was just the same as he had been all night when the other Guardians returned. They all helped to change his bandages and keep him cool, but they knew they had to do something more than this to help him.

'Ahh...' North sighed, thinking hard. 'Idea!' he jumped up with excitement, shaking his fists around. 'What better place for winter child than winter weather?' he gestured towards the window, and the others understood. 'We take him outside!'

* * *

Once again, it was Bunny who took Jack. He carried him out of the room and down flights and flights of stairs, the other Guardians following close behind. Jack fidgeted in his arms, still moaning and mumbling in his sleep- he was warm, and Bunny could feel his hot and clammy skin.

It scared him.

They burst out into the freezing wasteland, then began to walk into the distance. They needed to get to somewhere even colder- if that was possible. After a half hour hike, everyone decided where they were was good. Around them lay nothing but white snow and the workshop looked like a little toy house in the distance, carved into the ice. The snow fell heavily over all of them, and huge ice cliffs loomed up all around them. They stood on a large flat of ice covered by at least ten inches of snow- it was deep here, but that was good. Bunny knelt down and shivered, his knees going numb, but he was only focused on his job. He slowly lowered Jack into the thick white blanket, and half of him disappeared it was so deep.

He still wriggled around, whipping his head from side to side, but his movement had slowed from the cold. It was working! After a few minutes of lying in the freezing cold, Jack only twitched every so often. He was paler again, and the Guardians felt the first glimmer of hope they had had in days. They waited outside for an hour before Bunny took the teenager back into his warm arms and carried him back to the Pole. They then decided it would be best if they used snow to keep him cool, so they kept buckets by the bed filled with the powder to occasionally sprinkle over him. It was getting into late evening, and once again they all needed sleep. Just like with Jack, they all felt the sudden need for slumber, but who was to say that was a good thing...?

It was Bunny's shift tonight. He worked hard to keep Jack cold, but he returned to his earlier state, throwing himself around and clutching at his sheets. They couldn't keep him outside all the time, so what choice did they have? The spirit of Easter thought it best not to tell the others about Jack's condition- it would only make them worry more, and to him it simply seemed like a fever. The night felt long and every minute felt like an hour. As time passed, Jack slowly stopped complaining in his sleep. By one, he was almost completely still. This was not good, and Bunny knew it. When he was shouting out and moving, at least that meant he was fighting- but this, this was as if he had given in. He was past the skittish stage of a fever and into the part when, before there was adequate medicine, most of the sufferers would...**_ No_**, Bunny refused to even think about it. It was like there was no medicine- any human could easily be treated for such a common illness, but this was so different. Jack was immortal, so surely he couldn't die? Bunny reassured himself with that, even if it was the only hope he had.

"_We all know Guardians don't get sick..._" North's voice echoed around Bunny's head, and he tried to make sense of anything that had happened. There was no sense in it, and he sat back in disbelief.


	14. One Sided Conversation

All about the bed of Jack Frost lay upturned chairs and water, towels and wet rags that had been used at some point to treat him before being discarded.

Bunny was not the cleanest of the Guardians. The buckets that had once held snow now lay empty on the ground, dripping from the melted ice. No one had bothered to refill them, and Bunny had to stay with Jack all the time.

He was still, almost impossibly still. His breaths were rare and shallow, and Bunny sat down for the first time in the whole night. The room lit up in a pale orange glow, only candles working now it was so cold in there. Occasionally they would blow out from fierce winds, but Bunny would always relight them. He watched the reflections flicker on Jack's face and thought. Thinking was all he could do. Something had to be done, but what else could he possibly do? His mind went blank.

'Look...' Bunny started, cringing that he was admitting things to his "enemy". '...It's been a while now. As in, since you became a Guardian... Gah!' he sighed and rubbed his eyes. 'I'm talking to someone who can't even hear me...'

Jack didn't react to Bunny's voice, as much as the rabbit would have liked him to. He placed another wet flannel on Jack's forehead, and his whole head moved slightly even from that gentle force.

'You fit right in, Jack, so don't go leaving us just yet, alright?' Bunny softly patted the sleeping boy's hand. 'I spent so long hating you, wanting to wipe you from the face of the planet, but... I was so blind. I never took even a minute to find out about you. I had no idea you didn't know about your past, and...' he had a sudden realisation. 'You've never told us anything about them since you found them.'

Bunny moved a few white hairs out of Jack's eyes, looking at his features as if they were a word he didn't know. 'Who were you, Jack Frost...?' he said quietly, trying to recollect any time Jack had talked about his past. 'You never said... You're so secretive, and we never even notice. What was it like when you were young? And Jack, look...' he paused and took a breath. 'I'm sorry. I'm sorry for all the rude things I've ever said, for treating you badly. You deserve no less respect than we do, and I can't help feeling you don't get it. I'm sorry for all those times I teased you because nobody believed in you. Jack... Truly, I can't imagine what it must have been like to live for three hundred years without anyone seeing you. I had to experience it only for a day, and that single day nearly killed me. I'm sorry. How alone you must have been- I never considered it. Alone... I suppose we all are sometimes.' he smiled, but he couldn't help feeling that he was missing something.

'Jack, please... Can you just... Just wake up?' tears gathered in Bunny's eyes. 'I don't know what to do Jack, I don't know how to fix you, but I need to. Just... Tell me what's wrong, and I'll do everything... Everything in my power to stop it. Just wake up for one minute and tell me what to do, then I can get on with it. Ple-please Jack... Can you do that for me?' he stared at the boy, his eyes flicking about his rosy tinted cheeks. He swallowed and forced himself not to get upset, holding his nose to his hand. He choked hard on his breath, containing a sob with all of his might.

Bunny thought about everything that had happened over the past few months, everything since Pitch had returned. In a way, Jack had sort of brought the Guardians together. Before he was chosen, they would bicker and get on each other's nerves, but now they were much closer. They hadn't spent enough time with one another before then- it had been years since they had met up at the Pole until Pitch returned. In a weird sort of way, his return had been good. He thought about their experience with the kids- Jamie had played such an important part in their struggle, and he couldn't think of what Jack must have felt when he was seen for the first time.

Bunny suddenly sat up. He looked wide eyed at the deep sleeping Guardian then towards the window. His chin lifted and he smiled the biggest grin he had put on in days- weeks, even. He whispered toward the broken glass, hope finding it's way back into him. 'Jamie!'


	15. The Believer

Bunny lay Jack down on the soft earth of his Warren, deep in the shade so that he wouldn't get hot. 'I've been doing too much of this carrying mate, you're doing my back in!' he complained, stretching out his spine. It was already warm enough here as it was, so he knew he had to be quick. He ran into the distance, watching Jack until he disappeared from sight. Through the Warren he navigated himself, running as fast as he possibly could towards the right exit.

In the bedroom of a young boy, a hole magically appeared in the floorboards and two long blue-grey ears popped out of it, rotating slightly to listen out for sounds. Mainly, he searched for the sound of a certain greyhound named Abby. A gentle snore was all that Bunny heard, and he smiled with joy. He jumped out of the Warren and walked over to the child's bed. Sure enough, there in the covers lay a little boy who had helped save the children of the world. Jamie slept peacefully with his mouth wide open, and Bunny noticed that his missing tooth had been replaced by a new one. As carefully as he could, Bunny lightly shook Jamie on the shoulder, and he mumbled in annoyance.

'Jamie, mate...' Bunny whispered and looked around, checking that he hadn't disturbed anyone else. When he turned back, the brown eyed boy stared back up at him happily then jumped to his feet on the bed. Just as he drew in a breath to say something, Bunny put his paw over his mouth to stop him from waking anyone.

'Why are you here?' Jamie asked in a tiny voice when his mouth had been uncovered.

'We have a... A problem, and I think you could help. You might be the only one who can help.' Bunny said seriously, but the child didn't take any notice.

'Are we gonna do more cool fighting?' he asked happily, bouncing up and down slightly.

'Nah, nothing like that mate, but it's very important. Will you come with me, just for a little while? You'll be back before sunrise, I promise!' Bunny said.

'Where to?' Jamie asked sweetly, his eyebrows curved upwards.

Bunny pointed to the ground and smiled knowingly. 'The Warren.'

Jamie's face lit up. 'Really?!' he could barely contain his excitement. 'I get to go to the warren?!'

'Sure mate!' Bunny offered his hand to the boy, who gladly accepted it and stepped carefully off his bed. 'But... It's probably best if you get on my back. The ride can be a little... Bumpy.' he knelt down to let Jamie onto his back.

'Alright then!' the child didn't care- he got to go to the Warren! THE Warren!

'Hold on!' Bunny said, then tapped his huge foot twice on the ground. Jamie looked in wonder as a hole appeared in the ground, and they disappeared down it in a flash. It closed up and left behind a couple of little flowers daintily poking out of the floorboard.


	16. Hopeless Hope

In the Warren, Jack lay as still as ever, his head turned to one side. He noticed the warmth and brightness of this place, and how different it was to where he had been before. The air was not cold, but it was fresh and it was lovely. His senses became more and more aware until he opened his eyes just a crack. He saw butterflies and brightly coloured flowers, then noticed the grass underneath him. He stroked it with his fingers, letting it knot underneath his palm- it was sort of itchy, but it was soft and plushy. A little bee buzzed about his head, but he didn't have the strength to flinch or shoo it away. He listened to the sound of Spring, and as much as it wasn't his season, he was still relieved that he was somewhere different. Then he realised that nobody was with him, and he didn't know why he was in the Warren. He felt hot, hot and dizzy, but he tried and tried to keep himself awake. He felt a little ladybird crawl across his ankle, and it tickled, so he giggled. He had to admit, the Warren was beautiful. There was really no place like it.

Jack turned his head slowly, making himself look the other way, but there was much the same view- greenery and stone and moss. It was luscious. The flowers bloomed and birds sung, and he felt peaceful. As he lay there he tapped in to different sounds and calls of creatures- then he suddenly heard a voice he recognised.

'That was so cool! Take me again sometime, please?' a boy's voice echoed through the Warren, and Jack had to strain to hear it- it was far away.

'Jamie...?' Jack managed to let out a whisper. He tried once more to turn his head back the other way, but it didn't happen. He could hear Bunny's voice in the distance too, but it was too quiet for him to understand. His senses started to slip away from him, so he fought the darkness as much as he could. He felt gentle footsteps on the ground, and Jamie suddenly stopped smiling when he saw his friend lying on the grass by a hollow cave of rock.

'Jack!' he called out, running as fast as he could to the Guardian's side. He fell to his knees beside him, unsure what to do.

'Easy there, mate, be gentle.' Bunny said softly.

'What...' Jamie stuttered. 'What happened to him?' he looked up at Bunny with fearful eyes.

'He got hurt. Pretty bad. Pitch came back...' Bunny paused, not wanting to scare the boy.

'Pitch?' Jamie seemed angry. 'He came back? Ah, I knew it!' he pushed his fists into the earth and pulled a vexed expression. 'What... What do I do?'

'I... I don't know, mate, just something.' Bunny realised this is where his plan had holes.

'Jack...' Jamie said softly, laying a hand on his shoulder. The winter spirit wore a thin brown overcoat to cover his bare skin that Bunny had put on him. As carefully as he could, with a fearful look in his eye, Jamie turned Jack's face towards himself. His eyes were shut and his features expressionless, and Jamie couldn't help but feel slightly afraid.

'Jack, I... I don't know what to do. I want to help you...' he spoke quietly but clearly. 'What can I do?' he started to tear up, and a single droplet fell down his bright cheeks and splashed onto the grass, disappearing in an instant. He was so worried. They sat in silence for a minute, and Bunny tried to stop himself from crying. Not even the boy who believed could save him.

'...Believe...' Jack's hoarse voice was barely audible, but the other two noticed it and smiled at each other.

'Believe in what?' Jamie asked, leaning in closer. There was urgency in his tone. 'Jack? Believe what?'

The teenager didn't respond. He had slipped back into his deep sleep, his pink cheeks hot in the light. He wouldn't respond to anyone like this.

'Believe...' Bunny paused, thinking hard. 'Believe in... him. Believe in Jack Frost.'

Jamie nodded at Bunny, then looked back down to his friend and shut his eyes tight. He used all the strength he had to believe in Jack, trying to give him some sort of power back. After a few minutes, he opened one eye cautiously.

'Did it work?' he asked quizzically, hoping that Bunny would say yes.

'I don't know, let's keep watching.' Bunny said slowly, trying to keep Jamie out of pain's way.

'Jack Frost... Jack Frost... Jack...' Jamie repeated, holding his eyes firmly shut and gripping Jack's hand.

Bunny stared down to the ground and shook his head.

'...Frost...' Jamie paused, then opened his eyes bit by bit. 'Jack?' he looked down to his friend, lightly shaking him.

'Did you see that?!' Bunny exclaimed excitedly out loud suddenly, and Jamie looked up very confused.

'See what?' the boy enquired.

'You did it!' Bunny hopped up and down with excitement, smiling uncontrollably at him.

'What?!' Jamie smiled back. 'I did?' he looked over to the Easter Bunny and grinned to himself, immensely proud that he had helped to heal Jack.

'There was just a big golden light and he looks much better. Thank you, mate!' Bunny grinned at the elated boy who smiled back at him.

'Well... I'm glad to have helped!' Jamie jumped to his feet, but his eyes betrayed his tiredness.

'Come on, back to bed for you.' Bunny ruffled his hair and leant over so that the child could clamber onto his back again. Jamie obediently did so, and he barely fought off sleep. He was strangely sleepy, but it didn't worry him.

The Easter Bunny sprinted through his tunnels back towards the boy's home, bounding as fast as he could. When they arrived, a light was on in the house and Jamie had to quickly scramble into bed before his mum came in. Bunny said a quick goodbye, then hopped back to his underground lair, headed straight in the direction of the still dying Jack. He couldn't bear to tell Jamie that Jack was no better, as he might have become afraid. That was the least thing they needed at the moment- another child frightened.

But little did Bunny know, Jamie was a lot smarter than he realised.


	17. The Depths Of Evil

In the Warren, Bunny came back to the main chamber for what felt like the hundredth time that day. He glanced over to where Jack was lying, seeing him still scarily still. He sighed heavily and continued over to the Winter Spirit, feeling useless and tired after such a wasted night. It couldn't have been easy on the injured teenager either.

As Bunnymund edged closer and closer, he felt the pang that something was wrong, something he couldn't quite put his finger on. There was something about Jack...

It was only when he was meters from Jack's side that Bunny saw it. He gasped uncontrollably and cursed at himself freely for leaving him alone. He had made a very,_ very_ bad choice tonight.

'No, no... Jack_ please_!' he held back tears. 'I WILL GET YOU, PITCH!' he shouted all around him so loudly his throat burned. There was no reply, only the silence of the Warren.

Bunny dropped to his knees next to Jack, wiping his face aggressively with his hands. 'I'm sorry, Jack...' he heaved in a breath. 'I'm so sorry...'

Next to the newest Guardian, in amongst the bright grass, lay a shining metal dagger. It was stained red with blood and had a wavy silver blade, created to ensure more pain was inflicted than if it was straight. Jack's blood glistened in the bright light- on the knife and on his skin. His bandages had been ripped and the coat torn from covering him. His left side, at his waist, had a two inch long slice in his pale flesh. Bunny could see that the dagger had been twisted while it was in his body, and the deep wound gushed blood like nothing he had ever seen. Seeing blood had always made him woozy.

Pitch had been here, here at the Warren... He thought his tunnels had been safe. Nothing was safe.

Bunny leaned over to look at Jack- his right cheek was bruised and red, and the side of his neck had been skimmed with the blade as well. While the Easter Spirit breathed heavily, it was next to impossible to observe Jack's. He had to calm himself before he could check the Winter Spirit's vitals, which was not an easy task to do. Rage filled his stomach to the deepest pits, and he could only begin to imagine the horror of the Guardians when they found out that he had taken Jack without letting them know, only for him to be injured horrifically while he wasn't present. He couldn't begin to imagine what Jack had been through- he would have surely woken at the pain.

After a minute or so of random and fluctuated thoughts Bunny managed to focus solely on helping his fellow Guardian. 'Alright, well, you're breathing at least mate...' he sighed in relief but then realised he had to pick up the bloodied teenager once again. This was becoming a habit. 'Please, just a little while longer, and you'll be back at the Pole...' he whispered tenderly into Jack's ear, trying to comfort him as well as he could while he lifted his dead weight frame into his arms for the sixth time that week. The Guardian of Fun didn't stir at all in his pain induced sleep, and Bunny could only feel the vital time slipping away from him.

* * *

'Pathetic little immortal!' Pitch laughed at himself, reliving the moment when Jack Frost, the joyful Winter Spirit, had screamed in pain- only for nobody to hear him. 'Guardian of Fun? Huh hmm,' he chuckled inwardly, 'we'll see about that.'

As he spoke, a mighty sand wave crashed down behind him and formed into a sea of onyx coloured creatures. There were horses, wolves, bears, tigers- you name it, there was a fearling of it. The Boogeyman cackled into the darkness and lifted himself gleefully into the air, pleased with his work. This was barely the beginning, and the Guardians still had no clue as to what plagued Jack Frost. He looked down on his army that would only grow over time, and his yellow eyes sparked as if zapped with electricity. He could feel the power in his veins.

'Ah!' he smelled the air, imagining the scent of fear rising into his nostrils like a freshly baked pie. 'Can you feel it little ones? Can you feel the strength we gain from Frost? I can! Mmm! Why did I spend all those years trying to scare the children, when I could scare a _Guardian_- this is so much better! It's a feast my pretty ones, so dig in! Unleash your cruellest and most painful nightmares onto him, the sickly one, and he'll be ours. Either he turns, or he dies!'

Pitch revealed his grey and sharp teeth to his fearling minions and smiled with incredible ease. He hadn't felt this happy in a very, very long time.

'Ohh, he thinks he can't die? Shall we prove otherwise?' Pitch waved his fingers in front of his face, one hand clenched behind his back, and there before his eyes was a mirror. Instead of showing the image of the Nightmare King, it played out little scenes of all the Guardians. One flashed up of North, and Pitch paused it.

'Good on you, North, keeping him unaware. I mean, why would he want to know that he can die? Well, all in good time I believe. You'll have to tell him sooner or later...' an image of all four Guardians appeared, them all laughing and enjoying themselves. 'And when you do, I will be watching.'


	18. 2nd Author's Note- Skip If You Wish

Hello!

Can I just start by saying THANK YOU to anyone reading this- I only started putting chapters up last night, and I already have 3 followers- now to you that might seem like none, but the fact that it has happened in less than 24 hours and that this is my first fic is really exciting! I'm really looking forward to seeing where this goes, and I'm having a blast writing it!

Sorry if me injuring Jack again caught you by surprise... Well, that was the idea, but I hope you can forgive me for inflicting more pain on him! If you're confused about loads of things, don't worry- everything will be explained later (I hope). Now I'm not sure whether me getting no reviews means that I'm doing okay, or that people aren't particularly interested... Hmmm, well, I'm hoping I do get some reviews, but I'm not the kind of author who requests "ten reviews for the next chapter!", because sometimes you don't want to review, you just want to read, and that's fair enough. It's also sort of begging for it, and you get forced responses ;) I want you all to be able to read my story without any pressure- and another thing- updating.  
Well, to be honest, I'm going to be pretty bad at updating. Last night I went on an absolute updating spree, and that's why you got 17 chapters in one night (well, 16)! Don't be expecting that many from now on! I hope I can keep this rolling quite smoothly, as I know as a reader, it's really very very very very irritating having to wait weeks for a new chapter. I will try to be a regular updater *takes out four leaf clover*, but if I'm not, please forgive me *hides in the corner*.

ANYWAY! Rant over.

Again, THANK YOU SO MUCH! I feel suddenly very welcome on this site, and I hope you'll keep reading!

Emily xxxxx

Little personalised Russian dolls for all! 3


	19. Facing The Guardians

'I said, GET OUTTA MY WAY!' Bunny cried desperately to the Yetis and Elves, not trying to offend them, but he was in a hurry. Everything fell deathly silent as he entered the Workshop so early in the morning. Streaks of pale sunlight fell through the windows onto the wooden beams, softly lighting the whole place- it looked serene. There was something to be thankful for today, at least one thing.

As Bunny walked through the Workshop, every helper looked on with dismay and worry printed onto their eyes. He heard heavy footsteps in a corridor not far away, booming and echoing in his ears as if they were a death march. Although he was terrified of what the other Guardians would say or do, right now all he had to do was make sure that Jack was safe again- no matter what the consequences of his actions.

Tooth was the first to appear out of a large doorway. She anxiously flung her head from side to side, looking around until her eyes settled on Bunny. She gasped and couldn't hold in a cry of despair, her whole face betraying her emotions. Sandy was next, then North, who both acted in similar manners. The three rushed through the Elves and Yetis, barely looking to see where they were going. It was as if Jack was the only thing they could see. Everything became much clearer when they were up close.

Bunny's eyes seemed to look into nothingness, staring right through Tooth who landed in front of him. Tears fell down his fluffy cheeks, and the other Guardians didn't know how to react- he had only ever cried in front of them a couple of times in all of their years together, and this time it was difficult to bear. Tooth said something to him, but he didn't hear. His knees gave way underneath him and he slowly crumpled to the floor, still holding Jack firmly in his grasp.

'I...' Bunny started, but ended up sobbing while looking at the broken child in his lap. 'I tried... To help...'

That was all he could muster up.

'It doesn't matter what happened, Bunny, we just need to help him.' Tooth said clearly and slowly. 'Stories later, treatment now.' He nodded once very distantly in response, and she tried to take the injured Guardian from his arms. He was amazed that they weren't angry at him- if it had been one of the others, Bunny would have exploded with fury.

'No!' Bunny suddenly regained his awareness. 'No... I mean... I'll take him. Just like before.' he stood back to his feet and put on a determined face.

'Are you sure?' North's deep voice was like a gong being slammed into a church bell in Bunny's ears he had been so out of it.

'Yeah... Sure sure.' and with that, he started to walk towards anywhere.

'Where are you going?' Tooth asked, watching the grey rabbit stroll away.

'To his room!' the Easter Bunny replied over his shoulder.

Sandy made urgent pictures above his head of a big cross, and North understood instantly. 'The infirmary! I forget we have one sometimes!'

'What?' Bunny turned on his paws. 'There's an infirmary here, and you didn't think to ever mention?'

'Never seemed important.' North shrugged. 'Only used for Yetis and Elves if have minor injuries, but we are prepared for... More serious cases.' the look he gave made Bunny feel even weaker at the knees. This was one of those cases, and it was all his fault.

'Why are we stood around chatting?' Tooth said urgently. 'He needs help!'

So far, Bunny was the only one who realised how badly Jack was hurt- and he knew it. Before he had left the Warren, he had used the ripped bandages to stunt the bleeding on the stab wound and put Jack's overcoat back on him to cover him. Currently, all the other Guardians could see were a few stains of red on the pebble coloured jacket and on Bunny's fur. What they would be faced with in a minute... Well, he didn't know how they'd react to that.

'This way!' North boomed as he turned and gestured with his hand for them to follow, each of them jittering with fear for their newest Guardian.


	20. Getting Help

The five Guardians all briskly strode through the Workshop, up a wooden lift and down several corridors. The way to this infirmary seemed to be the most complex route they had ever travelled at the Pole. After a few minutes, they came to a large double doorway with beautiful wooden engravings- reindeer and trees were carved intricately with stunning accuracy. They hadn't seen anything like it in the whole time they had been here, and they stopped a minute to admire the beauty of it. Bunny was the only one who didn't care.

'Oi!' he shouted, and the others promptly snapped out of their daze. 'I don't think you've really taken in the situation, so can we please hurry?'

'Bunny, calm.' North comforted gently. 'We understand perfectly well that Jack is hurt and needs treatment, and we are getting for him. Keep your head!'

'I am perfectly-!' Bunny was interrupted by the opening of the huge doors swinging inwards and a completely different room appearing before them.

Everything was clean and white, except for the ceiling- it was painted delicately in blue and white. It depicted the sky. One half of it was light blue and had billowing clouds that looked really real, and then it faded out to navy on the other half- the night sky. Across the darkness were hundreds of tiny golden dots to show Sandy's dream sand, a sleigh led by reindeer, tiny little colourful fairies, and stars that dotted everywhere. It was divine, and it was perfect for this place- it was not too busy so that whoever had to stare up at it got dizzy or sick, and it was very calming. Before them were three neatly made beds without head or footboards, the frames made of sturdy metal. This was a lot more like a hospital ward than had originally been suggested.

Five big windows lit up the huge room, and dust flew around at the movement of people- it had been many months since this place had been used, but it was still cleaned weekly. Cupboards lined the far wall, and it was that bed that they chose to use. North walked over to it and pulled back the sheets ready for Jack, eyeing his carrier to come and place him down. Bunny bowed his head to avoid eye contact and paced quickly towards the made bed, letting Jack's head fall sideways away from him. This movement revealed the slice on his neck and the bruise on his cheek- Tooth gasped once more, and Bunny could only bite his tongue while imagining what her reaction would be when they took his coat off- if she had been so shocked that his neck had been only slightly cut, it couldn't be good.

As carefully as he possibly could, Bunny lowered Jack onto the bed below. The three others were all on the other side of the bed so that they wouldn't get in the way, and they all stopped still and let their limbs hang loose in shock. The Easter Bunny looked at them, their eyes so wet, trying to piece together what they were staring at in his dazed state. Soon he noticed it was his chest and stomach that they glared at- he glanced down and ended up staring at it himself. His white fur was completely drenched in scarlet blood around where he had held the Winter Spirit, and it dripped from him and onto the floor. His hands were soaked too, and he looked at his own coat, panting and feeling sick- now the blood was on him. It made him want to throw up. He stumbled backwards and fell into a chair behind him, not able to look at what would happen next.

Attention was drawn back to Jack- the Guardians looked down on his still frame and dreaded whatever they would find under his overcoat.

North put his hands on it, ready to pull it off, but he paused and drew in a pained breath. 'Bunny... I know is difficult, but before we look at him, will you please tell us what is wrong so that we can prepare ourselves?' he looked hopefully at the seated Guardian, who swallowed heavily before opening his mouth.

'He... Pitch... Stabbed.' everyone froze. That was something they had not been ready for. 'With...' he stopped, then reached for the holster on his back. The sound of metal against leather scratched at their ears, and they all watched in horror as he brought a waved blade out and held it in front of his face, stained red. He looked at it for a few seconds before guilt pangs came back, and he let it clatter to the hard linoleum floor without being aware of it. He couldn't hold that sort of weapon in his paws, not after it had done such disgusting damage on his friend. He panted and rubbed his eyes, not daring to look up into the gaze of the others.

Inch by inch, North pulled the jacket away from Jack's bare skin to reveal his red stained front. The once crisp sheets underneath his lanky frame were now logged with blood, and they tenderly peeled away the rest of his coat. Jack's face was pale, paler than ever, but they all hoped that was a good thing. His eyes were clamped shut and he barely breathed, only inhaling just enough for him to stay alive. His blinding white hair shone in the early morning light like strokes of a paintbrush on canvas. Sandman, North and Tooth all stood around the bed looking down at their hurt friend, eyeing up the sopping bandages that clung to his side like a leech. Not a patch of the original colour of the fabric could be seen.

'Sandy, a towel would be good.' North nodded towards the cupboards behind them, and the little dream man did as he was told. He came back in mere seconds with a folded towel in his hands, where he found North already taking off the soaked bandages. The final strip lifted from Jack's side- having dried on his skin- and North carried it as if he had a book balanced on his head to a bin, but not managing to avoid a trail of thick red liquid dripping onto the floor from the movement. The air smelled like metal- the smell of blood. North returned hurriedly to Jack's side, and instantly Tooth and Sandy started crying uncontrollably. Their eyes fixed on the gaping hole in their friend's side, blood oozing from it and streaming down his waist to the bed. Despite all of this, the sleeping teenager still did not stir.

Letting out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding, North spoke. 'Okay, maybe we hadn't taken in the situation.' he sighed heavily. 'Sorry, Bunny, we should have listened...' he shook his head and dug his fists into the sheets.

'No worries, mate...' Bunnymund replied shakily and quietly from the chair. 'Just keep helping him.'


	21. Dreams and Explanations

Jack groaned from the ache in his head and the bright sun on his eyelids as he suddenly became aware of his surroundings. Slowly, he sat up and rubbed his hair that felt smooth and soft- as if it had been washed, which was unusual. Where was he...? He looked around while squinting, still having to try to adjust to the light. There was a tall building, like a house from many years ago except massive, that towered over him to his right, and a single tree to his left. The tree bloomed great white flowers and huge reddish purple fruits that he had never seen before in all of his travels. He stood gently to his feet and wandered towards it, admiring the beauty and age of it. It must have been at least several centuries old- maybe as old as he was. As he looked closer, he saw that the flowers were great lilies.

'Lilies...?' Jack whispered to nothing, questioning everything around him. He tried to focus his eyes on what was beyond the vast tree, what was out in the distance, but his eyes wouldn't let him look there. He tried several times to gaze out into the unknown, but his head drew his eyes back to the tree every time, and it made him dizzy. Maybe there was nothing there, maybe this was just the whole world he was in. No, wait, this wasn't his world... How did he even get here? He struggled to remember, but once again his head fuzzed and turned off at the idea of recalling anything.

After observing the tree for a good few minutes, Jack decided there was nothing more to be done about it. The branches were too high for him to climb, but why would he want to go up there anyway? That was answered by his throat. He was thirsty- more than thirsty- it felt like all he'd been drinking for the last month was sand. The weird fruit glistened in the eery half light, and he watched as a bead of water dripped down the side of one of them. It balanced on the bottom before gravity took it's toll and it came plummeting towards hard ground. It fell heavily, and Jack seemed to be able to feel it come towards him- he didn't want it to touch him for some reason, so he stepped back and away, his head spinning.

He turned on his heels and the tower of a building loomed up ahead of him like the hideout of a villain in an old fairytale. It's shadow fell weightily over him, and every wall seemed to darken. The windows were smashed and broken, every single one, and he saw nothing when he looked into them except a black chasm. It was pitch black in there.

Wait... Pitch? Black? Something about that sounded familiar, and he felt his insides tighten at the thought of the words.

The house was made of wood, a bit like a log cabin, but it had hundreds of windows and reached up to the sky. The further he traced the outline to the top, the further it went into the clouds- up and up beyond the reach of any machine or person. It never stopped growing in height. The sun moved quickly from behind it to in front of it, lighting up the side that had only seconds before seemed scary and unnerving. It now looked much more friendly, every nook and cranny that had been black now illuminated and visible. Something drew him to it. Even the windows and the doorway at the bottom. He could have sworn there hadn't been a door there a few minutes ago?

Intrigued, Jack tiptoed towards the hole in the wall, listening to his own breathing- it was the only sound around. Not even a breeze blew. Everything was still. Unnervingly still.

* * *

'So, Bunny, would you mind explaining what you were doing with Jack last night?' North looked down on the Easter Bunny with one eyebrow raised.

'Crikey...' Bunny sighed. 'I knew this was coming.'

'Well, you can't expect us not to ask, not after this.' Tooth pointed towards Jack's side, which she was currently helping North to wrap tightly. To anyone walking in on this scene, it looked like they had been butchering an animal. Jack's blood spattered the floor, spread around from movement of the Guardians and the drips falling from the sheets. He lay as motionless as ever, only ever budging when he was being shoved around by North, who couldn't exactly control how aggressively he held things in his meaty hands. Nothing was looking up, despite the fact that they had managed to patch him up- this was serious. They still didn't know what Pitch was doing to Jack to make him so ill over the past few days, and they imagined it hadn't gone away. Now he simply had another injury to add to his pains. Spots of red peeped through his bandages already, as they hadn't managed to stop him bleeding completely, despite the stitches. That would have to happen naturally.

'In the night, he stilled.' Bunny began dismally, and the others looked up in interest. 'He stopped fighting the fever, and for a moment, I thought we'd lost him. I didn't know what to do, so I sat there thinking, and after a while, I started to think about his believers. Jamie's face flashed into my head, and I was sure that he could help Jack. So I took him to the warren, then went to get Jamie. He tried and tried to help somehow, just by talking to Jack if that did anything. And Jack, he woke- it was looking up. I thought I'd done something right...' Bunny stopped himself, staring blankly at the friend who he had failed to protect. 'Jack said one word to Jamie, and one word alone-_ believe_. So we tried- he believed in Jack with all his might, but nothing happened. I convinced him that he had made Jack a bit better so he wouldn't worry, then I took him home as fast as I could run. When I came back, I saw the knife and the blood and...' he stopped completely to cover his face and hide his eyes he was so ashamed.

'You should have told us first, Bunny,' North glared at him intensely, a hint of anger in his voice, 'but you did a good thing.'

Bunny's eyes widened at the response and he met North's huge blue gaze. 'What...?' he stuttered, barely believing he wasn't being tied down and beaten.

'It was good idea, and you say Jamie woke Jack, yes? That means he must have made some effect. Most important thing to remember now is that this is not your fault, Bunny. You were only doing what you thought was best for Jack, and all of... this,' he glanced down to his hands on Jack's side, 'must have happened within barely minutes. You could not have expected such an attack.' North smiled reassuringly, and Bunny felt slightly better for it.

Sandy came over and patted him on the back softly, smiling too. Tooth was barely aware of anything that was happening- she was in shock and could only focus on helping Jack. Now nearly the whole of his torso was layered tightly in bandages, especially around his waist and shoulder.

Nobody noticed, but Jack's eyes twitched and his face slightly contorted in discomfort. What he was dreaming of, nobody knew, but it certainly wasn't good. Hundreds of miles away, a man dressed all in black robes smiled menacingly and laughed with joy.

'The latest nightmare, and trust me Jack... Not your worst.'


	22. 3rd Author's Note- NO LONGER IMPORTANT

**Before I start, can I just say sorry for all the notes!**

Anyway, I'll keep this short- I just wanted to let you know that I'm not going to have internet access for various reasons over the next 9 days- at least, not all the time. I might have the occasional connection, but currently I have no idea. Due to this,** I almost definitely won't be able to post until the 18th**- so, to make up for it, I will put on nearly every chapter up to where I'm writing currently tonight, so that you won't be short of anything to read. I'm really sorry for this, and I do hope you'll forgive me... I'm also sorry because I think I'm going to leave it on a massive cliffhanger...

Right! That's as much as I need to tell you, so feel free to move on to the next chapter- I really hope you've been enjoying the story as much as I have writing it! :D

I'd just like to say a super massive thank you to my friend, C.M, who's been following this from the beginning and has been really enthusiastic about it! I've been talking to her about it, and I'm so happy to have a friend that I can go a bit mad about ROTG with. She was the one who introduced me to the film in the first place (yes, you too T.W), and I honestly cannot even begin to express my gratitude to them for it- I'm in LOVE! So, again, thank you to the ends of the earth C, I feel so privileged to have someone by my side so strongly on this. You're an amazing friend, and I love you to bits! 3 3 BUUUHHHHH


	23. Dream To Nightmare

Steadily, Jack climbed the stairs in the lifeless house. When he had entered there had been no rooms and no corridors, just a single flight of steps that lit up a dim yellow in the foul lighting. Dust flitted around at the movement of something inside, and the air was stagnant and heavy. Every step he took creaked and echoed- they were made of wood, and rotting wood. This place had been left vacant for too long for it to be able to survive much longer. Occasionally a splinter flicked out of the tired wood when he stepped down, the first step towards the whole thing breaking.

Jack strode further and further up, wondering how long these stairs would go on for, but never stopping. Something willed him on and pushed him to fight his fears and reach the top. After a very long ascent, he began to feel fresher air caress his cheeks, and he welcomed it as a good sign. He sped up towards the top of the tower, excited to see what he would find. After a final corner, he was faced with an old and weak looking door with light peeping through the cracks at the other end of another flight of steep stairs. Knowing he was nearly there only encouraged Jack more, so he started to run. He crashed on the chapped steps as he sprinted and he felt the deathly crack of wood under his feet. Before he knew it, Jack was flinging himself onto the next step before he fell through the cracks. He heard the snapping and falling of what was once a stair down through the floors of the house and he shivered. It was a long way down.

Not waiting any longer, he started to scramble up the remaining few stairs, nearly every single one soft and weak under his weight- one by one, all of the steps gave way and collapsed into the nothingness below. Panting aggressively and forcing himself to keep moving without looking back for even a second, Jack eventually reached the door. He slammed himself against it and held it tightly so that he wouldn't fall back. The last couple of steps had been made of stone, so they didn't crack and break, despite the vines and foliage growing all along them and wrapping them in their spindly arms.

Regaining his composure, Jack dared to look back on what was left of the stairs below him. The answer was "not much". About sixteen steps were missing and the only thing left behind were the edges of each plank, still drilled into the mouldy walls with rusty nails that stuck out jaggedly at awkward angles.

Jack pushed and pulled on the door, having to break several vines that held it shut like a lock, until it opened. The movement and the age of it nearly forced the door off it's hinges and a loud crash sound echoed around the stairwells. Light flooded in, and the dust went mad at the sun. Tiny specks flew about in his eyesight at high speeds and he struggled to recognize the stairs when it was lit.

'Only one way now...' he sighed, used to talking to himself having spent three hundred years alone and turning to leave the building.

Jack appeared out into the bright light of the surprisingly flat roofed house and took in a breath. It was only now he was out in fresh air that he realised how tiresome each breath had been inside. He wandered around slowly, exploring the layout. It was pretty simple, really- just a roof with a door and no barriers around the edge. Cautiously, he walked over to one edge- the edge where he could see the tree- and peered nervously over the building. The height was almost unbearable- he didn't know he had climbed so high, and his stomach fluttered as if tickled by wings. The tree nearly reached as high as the building, and that was weird. Still, something felt missing.

'Looking for something?' Pitch's voice echoed around the impossible place. Memories flooded Jack's mind- how could he forget? He turned abruptly, but nobody stood there. The only thing that faced him was a curved wooden stick that lay on the ground across from him.

_I know this staff..._

Jack wandered over to it and fondled it in his palms, once again suddenly remembering things. 'Pitch, why do you hide?' he asked into the thin sky, pale blue streaks lining the edge of the atmosphere. His voice was raspy and it hurt to speak he needed water so much.

'Oh, I don't know...' he laughed through his grey nose. 'It's more fun this way!' Suddenly, his staff disappeared into fine black sand and was no more, and Jack could only watch on in despair as it crumbled into nothing. Pitch appeared from the shadowy doorway Jack had only emerged from a few minutes before, looking down at his feet and smiling.

The teenage boy clenched his fists and ground his teeth, angered by all of this. There was nowhere he could go, and nothing he could do.

'What do you want?' Jack asked firmly while rubbing his tired eyes.

'Everything, of course. Every child and every fear, that is all.' Pitch replied simply.

'What did you do to the other Guardians?!' Jack desperately squeaked, quickly becoming aware of the damage he could be doing by not being there for them.

'Do you really not remember?' Pitch cocked his head to one side, smiling hopefully.

'Remember what?' Jack took a step back. He had nothing to defend himself with so there was no point in acting as if he could attack.

'Let's just say I'm taking care of you first.' Pitch smirked overly proudly.

'What...?' Jack questioned. 'You're "_taking care_" of me?'

'In a sense, yes.' Pitch smiled. 'Ooh, but there are a few other words I could use that better describe it. Hmm...' he looked mockingly up at the sky to pretend he was thinking. 'How about... Hurting? Maybe... killing? Or... distracting?' he disappeared back into the shadows, and Jack eyed up the scene cautiously.

'You haven't hurt me, or killed me... Pitch what the hell!? Wait...' it dawned on the skinny teenager. 'Distracting...? Distracting from what?'

'Only reality- nothing major.' Pitch's voice grew quiet, but it was carried on the wind and whistled in Jack's ears. 'Fight the fear, go on, scare the Guardians even more! I can't wait to see their faces!' he laughed, manifesting himself out of the shadows behind Jack.

'**Boo!**' Pitch said in the Winter Spirit's ear and he turned instantly to face his enemy. 'So, red's the latest fashion? Wetlook red? Ooo, I like it!'

'What?' Jack looked on in utter confusion, only to see Pitch's hand stretch out towards him, his index finger pointed. Gently, he tapped Jack's side, and he watched in horror as blood seeped through his clothes and streamed endlessly. _'What?!_' he shouted in bewilderment, bordering on terrified at what was happening.

'Ah! It was hot, too! I know how much you adore the heat!' Pitch laughed sadistically. Jack felt his side burn- a hissing sound came from the non existent wound, like something burning. His eyes widened with horror when he realised it was his own flesh. 'Sickly little thing.' Pitch faked being caring.

_'AHH!_' Jack cried out in pain and fell to his knees. The heat spread all across his body and up to his head, making him dizzy and his vision blurry. The agony from his side made him want to scream, but he held it in.

'Oh, and those scratches...' Pitch appeared behind him and pushed him onto his back violently, then leant over his stained front. He wiped one finger lightly across two different points around his collar bones, and Jack watched as yet more blood appeared through his hoody. Pitch also swiped along Jack's upper arm, and the same happened again except more painful. That was deeper. 'Sand is sharp, too, you know...' Pitch chuckled. He tickled Jack's ankles, but it was as if he tickled with needles. He lifted a hand to Jack's face and stroked lightly across his jawline, cheek and bottom lip, cutting them as well. Was any part of him going to be left unscathed?

'And I mustn't forget the bruises!' Pitch laughed again, and Jack lay wondering what more he could do. The Nightmare King had fun jumping around Jack's limp body and prodding him in his stomach and chest and one aggressively on the right cheek, next to the cut. Every touch made Jack feel as if he'd been kicked by a toe capped boot, and he cried out in desperation. His eyes streamed tears that fell from the pain and he tried to look around, but was met with everything in triple vision. He felt like he was going to faint. He was hot... Scalding hot, like a fire consumed him. He was burning, at least on the inside, and it hurt more than anything he had ever imagined. He screamed as loudly as his lungs would let him, the agony unbearable. Around him spread a lake of his own blood- surely more than was in the whole of his body. He was terrified of it- he'd never seen so much of his own blood, and he was soaking in it.

_'Pathetic._' Pitch spat at Jack. 'You're pathetic. All of you, but _you_...' he looked judgementally at Jack, scanning him up and down. '_You_ most of all, Frost.'

Without any concern, he picked up Jack by his throat, almost completely stopping him from breathing, and walked him over to the edge of the building.

'I see you like falling, Jack.' Pitch grinned demonically, holding the nearly unconscious Guardian in his death grip very high above very hard ground. Jack's completely red face stared wide eyed at the Boogeyman, still attempting to claw his way out of his hand. As his final dregs of energy left him, Jack went limp and felt darkness pull on his senses, every vein in his face bulging and pulsing.

'Tell the Guardians,' Pitch looked down at the useless scrawny thing in his grasp with disgust, 'The nightmares are on me.'

Jack heard the voice of evil from far away, then felt himself falling. It was in those few seconds that he realised and accepted he was going to die, and that was all there was to it.

A thin and limp teenage Guardian hit the solid ground with a terrible crack, and the master of darkness looked down upon yet another victory.


	24. Waking Up And Breaking Down

In a quiet room at the North Pole, four Guardians bustled around attempting to heal the fifth. Jack Frost still did not dare to move, and his friends were becoming increasingly worried- he had only woken up once in nearly a week, and still everyone was baffled as to why. They debated with themselves in their heads, but never came to a sound conclusion. There was simply no explanation for it.

From the sick bed, a light grumbling was heard. Everyone turned their heads instantly, to see the teenage Guardian fidget in his sleep.

'Jack?' Tooth said softly as she hovered over to the bed, hopeful that he was recovering.

Jack began to twist in the bed, grabbing onto the sheets with white knuckled fists- he complained and his face frowned inwardly. Despite this, he was still out of it. He shook involuntarily, and it looked as if he was trying to back away from something above him. He panted and heaved breaths greedily in and out of his lungs, and a light sweat erupted on his forehead. He was hot again.

'Jack, please, keep fighting it!' Tooth held his hand to encourage him, but he flinched at her touch. The more he moved, the more he complained- and it certainly wasn't doing any good to his side.

Jack's tossing and turning only resulted in him injuring himself and worrying the other Guardians- Sandy flew over and sprinkled some golden dream sand in his face, but it did nothing. His dream sand always worked... He felt the fear of hopelessness wash over him like a tsunami. Sandy's dreams were his strongest power, and even they didn't work. Everything was going wrong. There hadn't been a single good thing happen for days and days, and it weighed down so heavily on all of the Guardians. Sandy felt useless- truly useless. His dream sand didn't work, and it was in that moment that he knew there might not be a solution.

'Someone help me hold him down, he'll only hurt himself like this and he needs to stay calm!' Tooth shouted while she grabbed one of Jack's arms and pinned it to the bed. A Yeti, North and Bunny all rushed over to aid the Tooth Fairy by holding down a limb each. Sandy hovered over Jack's face, observing his expressions and watching his eyes. He convulsed in their grasps, not realising it was his friends that held him and also not realising his own strength. He was so skinny no one had ever thought he could hold such power in his tiny little frame.

Minutes passed, every second Jack becoming stronger and his helpers becoming weaker. He either had to go back into the deep sleep or wake up- they couldn't keep him like this for much longer. Sandy put his little hands on either side of Jack's neck to try to keep his head still, but it only distressed him more. The Sandman frowned in concern.

Without warning, deep and pale blue eyes shot open like a lightning flash. The Guardian of fun sat bolt upright despite his shackles, and gasped in the biggest breath he possibly could. Jack let out the most horrified and pained scream anyone there had ever heard. The whole workshop stopped in it's tracks and the workers looked in the direction the blood curdling cry came from. It lasted for at least twenty seconds, and all the Guardians could do was stand there listening to it. Never in all of their long lives had they heard such a chilling scream, and it really did shake them to the core. As soon as the wail died down, Jack started hyperventilating and frantically searching the room with his eyes.

'Jack!' North was a comfort amongst chaos. Everyone was rushing around now, looking for anything that could help. 'Jack, you have to be calm!' The winter child only looked up at North wide eyed, not taking in anything he said.

'Jack, listen, it was just a bad dream!' Bunny reassured. 'This is the real world, this is the real Workshop, and this is the real infirmary where we're treating you. Jack! Listen to me!' Bunny said firmly.

'What do you need?' Tooth asked desperately.

Jack tried to answer the question but was cut short when no sound left his mouth. He was very thirsty and immense pain jarred through every muscle, joint and bone in his body. He pulled the sheets into clumps and held his side as tightly as he could. 'Pain? Pain!' Tooth screeched, searching every cupboard and tin for some painkillers.

'Tooth!' North called. 'TOOTH!' he bellowed again, and this time she paid attention- in his hand was a bottle of dark syrupy liquid. He smiled proudly, then turned back to the patient.

'Jack, you must swallow four spoons of this if it is to work. Four, yes?' North said clearly and loudly, and Jack tried to nod in return.

Jack continued to pant as North undid the cap of the bottle- his big hands made it more difficult, especially considering they'd had to put elf proof locks on the bottles after that one incident. Tooth handed him a spoon from the cupboard, and he poured out the gloopy medicine onto it. Carefully, he pushed it towards Jack's mouth, who was still barely holding in screams. Between breaths, Jack gulped down the syrup- it tasted disgusting and was so thick his throat felt like it had halved in size. His mouth was sticky and it tasted horribly metallic. Before he knew it, another spoonful was shoved in front of his face, but what he had taken already had had no effect yet. He cried out again and coughed from the painkiller- it certainly didn't help his thirst. Everyone looked manically worried, and Jack only felt guilty for being the cause of it. He took the second spoon, then the third, and then the fourth. He felt no different. He tossed onto his side, but lost his balance from the dizzy sensation in his head and threw himself too far- completely off the bed. He fell to the floor with a horrible thud, and he started to shout in agony again- he'd landed on his front, hitting everything he had hurt. What was more, when the four Guardians looked over, he was lying in his own blood. The floor hadn't been cleaned, and they hadn't had time to wipe up the blood that had dripped onto the ground.

Jack winced visibly, realising why he felt wet. He couldn't move- it was like in his nightmare. All he could make himself do was cry. He lay there and cried, every tiny sob hurting him. The others didn't know what to do- they'd never seen Jack cry before, especially not this weakly. It was as if he converted back to being a child- lying on the floor and weeping made him look like a three year old who had thrown a temper tantrum but lost all his energy and just sobbed. Gently, a Yeti scooped Jack up, put him back on the bed and began cleaning him again. Jack gave in and tried to ignore the agony that was there, even though the painkillers had started to work. He felt so weak and useless, he didn't see the point in trying to fight this. Several minutes later, he still cried, but he was clean. There was nothing more they could do- now it was a waiting game for him to heal.

'Water...' Jack husked, and Sandy came over with a glass. Jack tried to sit up, but it still hurt like nothing he'd ever felt before, so Tooth and North came over to support him. They became his back rest, as he wasn't able to hold himself up, and he took the water for the second time. In one huge gulp, Jack chugged the cool drink down without stopping for a single breath. It was one of the best sensations he'd had in a while, especially as that was the first proper drink he'd had in days.

'Pitch...' Jack started, but terror grew in him at the thought of the Boogeyman. Even the fact that he was afraid made him more afraid- this was exactly what he had been trying to avoid.

'We know, Jack.' North said and sighed.

'If- _when_- I get my hands on that man I swear to Manny I will tear him limb from limb!' Bunny attempted to hold in his anger. 'I'll beat his sorry arse back to the Dark Ages and-'

'Bunny!' Tooth scolded. 'Enough! We know he hurt you, Jack.'

'No, no...' Jack lay back against the bed, but it had been put at an angle so that he was more upright. 'That's not what I meant.'

Sandy put his finger over his lips and pretended to zip them shut, gesturing towards Jack.

'Sandy's right, Jack, you need to save energy and rest.' North said softly, but Jack was having none of it.

'**Will you stop telling me what to do and let me speak?**' the Guardian of Fun replied aggressively. 'If I get any rest, I'll probably die in my sleep. Face it, I'm not going to last much longer, not like this.'

'**JACK!**' Tooth cried out in anguish. 'What's making you think like this?! It's crazy talk!'

'You will be fine, just you wait and see!' North smiled encouragingly.

'No, no I won't.' Jack shook his head and swallowed hard. 'If you would just listen to me for one minute, I could explain!'

'I'm not willing to listen to that sort of nonsense! Look, you're up and talking and you can move- isn't that a good sign?' Tooth continued and felt something bubble inside her. Was it... Anger? At Jack? She couldn't let him talk like this. 'We'll have you mo-'

'**STOP!**' Jack shouted, then took a deep breath. Everyone looked at him in shock. '_Please!_ Let me talk! Pitch... He...' he paused and looked curiously at his sheets, as if he would find the words to say in the creases. 'He found me.'

'What do you mean?' North asked, sitting himself down in another chair. The Yetis left, seeing that Jack was well enough to be alone for the moment.

'He... He found my weakness.' Jack gulped and forced himself not to make eye contact with any of the Guardians.

'What weakness?' Bunny contributed to the conversation for the first time, as he had felt so guilty when Jack had been talking about dying.

'My one true weakness... My fear.' he paused. 'He found it, and he lived in it, growing it. I- I couldn't fight it. Every night, it got worse and worse, but I never told you... I didn't want to worry you, but I... Ugh... I should have at least mentioned it... He- Pitch- he gave me nightmares... Uncontrollable ones, and I could never hold off sleep for long enough. And they... They got worse and worse.'

'What?' Tooth squinted. 'Jack, you should have said something- we could have helped you!'

'No, no I don't think you could. He's too strong. Not even Sandy.' Jack hung his head.

Sandy nodded to the others that his dream sand hadn't worked, upset that he couldn't help.

'I... That night before I stormed out at breakfast, he came.' Jack paused for a minute, pushing his fear deep down inside him so that it wouldn't bother him. 'He told me he would get to you, all of you, through my fear, and that's why I didn't tell you anything. If you were afraid, he could kill you... Just like he's done to me. He said that memory by memory, he would tear me apart.' Jack sobbed slightly.

'Memory?' Bunny asked. 'Your memories? What about them?'

'He... I don't know.' Jack looked up at the Easter Bunny, who couldn't say anything. Jack's blue eyes shone with tears that he fought away and wouldn't let fall, and Bunny could see the fear in them. Nobody had ever seen Jack Frost afraid. 'When I was out in the snow that day, I was thinking about a memory from when I was young, and then it was just... Gone. I can't even think of what it was about _now_!' Jack laughed in disbelief and rubbed his eyes. 'And it hurt. It hurt like nothing I'd ever felt before... And it kept happening. More and more memories disappeared, and each one lost weakened me and pained me further- so I came back to the Pole, and that's when I crashed into Bunny.'

'But how?' Tooth managed to control her flightiness and hovered slowly back and forth across the room. 'How can he destroy your memories...?'

'Well, you're the expert.' Jack sighed and coughed, then suddenly jerked in pain. He cried out, and the others had almost had enough of this.

'What is it?' North stood to his feet and peered down at the Winter Spirit in his bed. 'Jack, what is wrong?'

'Another... Another one...' Jack gasped out the words. 'Memory... It's gone!'

Sandy punched one fist into his palm, as if he was about to beat someone to a pulp. The outline of Pitch appeared above his head, and his fury made sand spurt out of his ears.

'It injured me and made me sick...' Jack continued when he had managed to regain his composure. 'I've lost so many, I barely know who I am anymore. I can't possibly hope to get through this, so... Please... Let me go peacefully?' Jack's eyes met with the four other Guardians in the room, who stared back at him in utter dismay.

'What?' Bunny questioned. 'Mate, Spirits can't die! You should know that by now!'

'Oh cut the crap, I know what happens.' Jack sighed. 'I can't believe you'd keep it from them, North, but I presume it was to protect us all.'

'North...?' Tooth glared at him with a puzzled expression.

'I... I never told you because I thought it would be better if you did not know.' North put his hands together under his chin. 'Spirits are immortal, yes, but there are ways that we can...'

'Are you saying that we can all...?' Bunny couldn't say the word.

Jack finished for him. 'Die.'


	25. Goodbye

'Jack, how could you possibly know that?' North squinted at him.

'I like a good book.' Jack replied cheekily.

'Back to the point,' Bunny interrupted, 'how can we possibly die?!'

'There is a rule that Man In Moon follows...' North began. 'If Spirit experiences such pain and suffering that they cannot truly function for their purpose, then Manny takes pity on soul. He... Does not wish to see any of us in pain, so he made this rule. He relieves the Spirit of their agony by letting them die, but only as last resort. Is his only way of saving someone from eternity of suffering.' North stopped to see his fellow Guardians staring at him wide eyed. Jack was the only one who didn't look up.

'What...? How...?' Tooth stuttered, her face scrunching in confusion. 'You never told us...'

'I am truly sorry for that, really. Until now, did not seem there was any danger of it ever coming to pass.' North bowed his head in shame.

'Huh!' Jack laughed through his nose. 'Until now.'

'No!' Tooth retorted in anger. 'We won't let you die, Jack! I won't let it happen!'

'There has to be something we can do...' North rubbed his bearded chin thoughtfully.

'No, there isn't.' Jack replied. 'There is nothing. You have to let me go.'

'No, Jack.' Bunny looked up from his chair, and Jack noticed his blood stained front for the first time. He must have carried him again. 'We will find something, so hold on.'

'How are you now? I see the painkillers are doing good job!' North tried to lighten the mood a little, but that wasn't going to work.

'Eh, I suppose they do help, but I can't fight it back much longer. See- I'm pink already.' Jack brought his hand up to his cheek and felt how hot it was. His breathing was struggled and heavy, and he could feel his side burning up. 'I don't know whether you all realised, but that knife-' Jack looked down to the floor where the waved blade lay, '-has something very dangerous in it or on it.'

Sandy hovered over with a question mark above his head, then picked up the dagger and peered at it quizzically. After only a few seconds of holding it, his palms began to turn black. Everyone looked horrified, and veins of darkness crept up his arms. He dropped it in shock and looked desperately up at Jack.

'Yeah, that.' Jack sunk his head back into a pillow. 'I dunno, Pitch must've used some dark magic to make it. All I know is that it hurts. And... It's hot. Maybe he heated it, or maybe it's just like that, but it was scalding hot and it... It burned me.' a single tear rolled down Jack's flushed cheek, and he wiped it away quickly. All Bunny could feel was guilt- it was his fault that this had happened. Jack had been awake when Pitch had stabbed him, and that thought was enough to destroy Bunny.

'I recognise... This blade, I recognise it.' North hurriedly walked out of the room without explanation, a couple of elves following after.

'Pitch...' Jack stopped himself, another memory being slashed, then another straight after.

'Jack!' Tooth called out, and more blood seeped through his bandages.

'He- he said... AHH!' Jack screamed, his face strained and red. 'He-he said... "_The nightmares are on me_"... I don't know wh-what it means but... B-be careful.' he looked up at Tooth and gasped.

'Jack...' Bunny pushed his way through the two other Guardians, desperate to see his friend. 'Jack, we will find a way to help you, just hold on! Painkillers?'

Jack turned violently from side to side, unable to say anything and coughing. Bunny searched the room for those painkillers, but all the bottles were marked in weird writing that he couldn't understand, and there were too many different medicines for them to risk giving him anything different.

'No...' Jack managed to let out. He stilled in the bed; lying onto his back and gripping his sheets as if he would fall off the earth if he didn't. 'Bunny...'

The Easter Bunny crashed around, several glasses smashing onto the floor. He stopped at the whimpered call of his name and bounded over to the bed. 'Yes mate?' he asked softly and offered his hand to the Spirit of Winter.

'Argh!' Jack cried out again, slamming his head against the pillow. He was holding in screams. 'Thank you...' Jack took Bunny's palm, squeezing it so hard he thought his hand could fall off- but he daren't say anything.

'Oh goodness!' Tooth cursed, stumbling around to look for that syrup. Sandy came over to her to help, and it was only Bunny that realised it was too late.

Jack laughed through his nose, sweat layering his face. 'Thank you... Don't be alone, because I know we all are sometimes.' he smiled with eyes full of tears, and watched Bunny's confused expression, trying to work out where he'd heard that before. 'Hey, don't think that because I was asleep, I couldn't hear you... I'm sorry, too, for not telling you about my past. It's really not that interestin- **AH**!' he contracted inwards, another memory cut.

'Hey, it's okay!' Bunny smiled down at his friend. 'Maybe I'll find out one day, who knows. And anyway, it's not like we've told you about us.'

'Careful with that!' Tooth shrieked to Sandy, who had just flown so quickly towards the ceiling that he had head butted it, and only narrowly missed dropping a jar full of something nasty onto the floor.

Jack panted and panted, and all Bunny could think is that each breath would be his last. 'Just... Take care of the others, and the kids... Jamie especially...' his nostrils flared and his eyes shone, but his breathing slowed.

'Don't you dare say it-'

Jack cut him off with a mischievous grin- a Jack grin. A trickle of blood fell from his nose. 'Bye bye Bunny... Kangaroo... Whatever...'

With that final word, Jack took a huge breath and his eyes emptied. Bunny saw nothing in them, just dazed and unconscious blue, then they fluttered and shut tight. Jack's body fell still and his grip loosened in Bunny's hand.

The Easter Spirit looked down on his friend, and he cried.


	26. The Door To Beyond

'Sandy...' Bunny said quietly, attempting to alert their attention. 'Tooth!'

Still the others continued to look for medicine that it was too late to use. More crashes and bangs echoed around the room, and a Yeti ran in at all the commotion- upon seeing the mess and the Easter Bunny on the sick bed, he instantly ran out of the room to get North.

'Please, _stop!_' Bunny's voice wavered, and the two other Guardians noticed straight away the difference in his tone. He was never weepy.

'What?' Tooth turned angrily away from the cupboards, but shut her mouth tight at what she saw. Her and Sandy hovered over to the bed that a very motionless Jack Frost lay on, wishing and hoping with all of their hearts to the Man In The Moon that he was alright. 'No, no, please no...!' she pulled her hands over her mouth.

They saw the blood on his side and his top lip, and knew that they were too late. Bunny never let go of Jack's hand.

'Ooo, looks like I played too dirty this time.' Pitch's voice was the most unwelcome thing any of the Guardians could possibly imagine in that moment. 'But that's not to say it wasn't fun- and I certainly don't regret it.'

'SERIOUSLY?!' Bunny screamed into thin air, protecting Jack by making himself into a shield. 'You do this to our friend, you KILL a Guardian, then you have the nerve to come to the place where he died? He was just a boy, Pitch, just a child!'

'Oh, I wouldn't call three hundred and fourteen years young! Well, to me, yes- he's a child compared to my age!' Pitch laughed, and the Guardians couldn't help but notice his voice was deeper, raspier. 'Well, it's been nice seeing you, but I'm going to leave you to bury the body. I would do it before North comes back- say Jackie's on holiday, forever!'

'Maybe North is back.' the man himself's voice boomed through the room, and before the Boogeyman could react, a small but sharp arrow hit him in the leg. He cried out, and fell away into the shadows in fear. Coming to this place had been the worst idea he'd had in a while.

'What happened?' North asked desperately, glaring at the still boy in the bed.

'He... He's gone.' Tooth stuttered and felt more tears gather in her eyes.

'What?' North walked over to them, avoiding the mess that was the floor. 'No... No I just found out about the...' he stopped, leaning over the Spirit. 'What?' he asked again.

'Are you all blind?' North looked up at them, but they didn't meet his gaze. 'Jack is not... Gone! He is asleep! Don't play tricks, especially not now.'

'What?' Bunny stared at Jack for a minute, then noticed his breath entering and leaving his lungs. 'Oh thank Moon...' he sighed heavily in relief.

'I know about knife.' North said seriously.

'You don't sound too happy to know about the knife.' Tooth rubbed her feathers- everyone was exhausted.

'No, no, it's true, I don't have great news.' North looked towards the ground. 'It is blade from many thousands of years ago. Pitch created it very early on in immortal life as weapon of evil. Nobody knows what it is made from- but it has special power. Whoever is hurt by dagger is easier to manipulate, and is overwhelmed with darkness. This is reason why Sandy's dream sand wouldn't go near Jack and Tooth's wings stopped working- knife can ward off good. It has special ability to make itself inflict as much pain as possible- it changes for individual. For Jack, biggest weakness is heat, so it became hot. It should not exist, let alone be kept by such a maniac.' North sighed, and everybody stared down at the dagger on the floor.

'How do we treat him for it?' Tooth asked hopefully.

'We don't.' North fell silent and still.

'Well, we have to do something!' Bunny retorted, letting out an anguished sigh.

'No, Bunny, there is nothing that can be done. It only enhances Pitch's power, and it will not heal. For now, we cannot do anything. We are powerless.'

'That's crazy. Surely your books say something?' Tooth's wings slowed their fluttering in harmony with her emotions.

'No, they say nothing.' North brought out a small leather journal, barely held together it was so old. He lay it on Jack's bed, and a few of the aged papers slipped out. There on the page it was open at was a drawing- detailed and professional- of the dagger. Notes were written in archaic writing all around it, but everyone there understood it. 'It all depends on Jack now. He has to fight, and fight hard, or we will have to say goodbye t-'

'No! No more goodbyes!' Bunny shouted, pulling his boomerangs out of their holsters on reflex.

'Bunny, please, he needs us to be calm now. Stomping around the place will not help him- and if there is nothing we can do, we must be with him and make him comfortable, alright?' North rested a hand on Bunny's shoulder and looked him seriously in the eyes. 'Jack's fate is in his hands now.'

* * *

'So, Jack, how do you feel?' Pitch paced the small, dark room like a phantom.

'Oh, brilliant! I just love falling from the sky and being stabbed! It's great fun!' Jack rubbed his head and squinted up at his captor. 'Where are we?'

'In your mind. Where else would I have such power?' Pitch's grey face came into view, grinning like a baby given candy. 'The Guardians are having fun back in the real world, I hope. I mean, I can't check on them, not while I'm here, but I can feel their fear! It must be great knowing you're causing them such pain?'

'Yeah well, I said my goodbyes, just about. You have me now, whatever you want to do with me, so do it. Kill me, destroy everything I know. It's _over_, Pitch. You got what you wanted.' Jack stayed calm- surprisingly calm- but firm.

'This isn't it, Jack. This is merely the first step!' Pitch Black wasn't worried that he'd be attacked. 'I could kill you right now, destroy everything at once, but where's the fun in that? No, instead, I'm going to watch you walk through every memory you have left, and feel the agony as it's crushed. Then, when in that last memory, I'll show you what real pain is. You won't even remember who you are anymore, you'll be a husk! A shadow of Jack Frost.'

'Then at least the memories I have left are strong ones! They'll be happy! I'll be happy to die with the people who love me around me.' Jack clenched his fists tight.

'See that's where you're wrong, isn't it?' Pitch shook his head at the Winter Spirit, smiling knowingly. 'The memories you have left, they may be your strong ones, but that's not to say they're your happy ones... Jack, you have some twisted things in here, I can feel it. _I've seen it_.'

'What?!' Jack's eyes doubled in size. 'But... But you said you didn't know what made me afraid... So you can't have seen my past...?'

'Oh Jack.' Pitch tilted his head sympathetically. 'That was when you were still up and fighting. You've been asleep for days, and that gave me the perfect opportunity to get inside your head.'

'So... You're not just a nightmare... You're the real Pitch?' Jack stumbled over his own feet walking backwards. 'My mind hasn't made you up?'

'No! It's really me! In your head! Terribly clever, isn't it all?' Pitch pushed Jack from behind, making him nearly fall face first into concrete.

'Now, I think we should start having that fun. After all...' Pitch paused to make his victim more afraid. 'It's what you do best, Jack.'

Pitch Black, the Nightmare King, disappeared into nothingness, laughing all the way. Jack Frost was left behind as lights turned on all around him. It was only now he realised this whole room was made of metal, rusted and browning, shining red in the dim light. A corridor lengthened away from him, and one individual light turned on at a time towards the end of it. When every cheap electric lamp had been switched on, Jack stared at the end of the path. There, tiny looking it was so far away and placed in such a vast wall, was a door. It was heavy and metal, just like the walls, and it creaked ajar just an inch. Beyond it was a bright light, almost blinding, but as much as Jack didn't want to go there, there was no other way out.

'Haha, fun, very funny...' Jack muttered under his breath as he walked towards the door to beyond. 'I can't wait.'


	27. Asking

It was night time at the North Pole, but barely a sound was heard. None of the Yetis or Elves spoke unless it was to do with the work which they continued selflessly. In an overly clean room lay a boy, a very special boy, who had not given up on his life just yet. Three of his friends sat about the room, all silent and watching, waiting for anything to happen. North, the Father of Christmas, was searching his library for any books with information on the knife used to stab the injured Jack Frost, or anything on memory loss. The Tooth Fairy racked her mind for any ideas on how to help get Jack's memories back, but she'd never experienced a case like this. They were stumped.

Sandy had worked his dream shift, and was currently sat on one of the other beds, occasionally falling asleep while sat bolt upright. Over the past few days, he'd felt especially useless. Most of what was happening was talking, and he really didn't do all that much talking. He was most helpful in situations where they had to physically act, but communication to work things out? Not so good.

Bunny had cleaned himself off, but it had taken quite the effort to get the red staining out of his front. He had had a nice hot shower, which had relaxed him, but he still didn't feel at all good. He was sleepy too, but his friend was more important now, and he wouldn't let himself let down Jack again. It was a mistake he'd only make once.

The Tooth Fairy had left her little fairies in charge of collecting all the teeth for the night, as she was going to stay with Jack for every minute she could. Her tiredness took over her after a while- and the other Guardians too, and they wondered why they suddenly felt so weak. They forced themselves to be strong, for Jack, and to not fall asleep.

In the library, North's search continued. He had sifted through hundreds of books in the past hours, and the work had been relentless. At some points another Guardian would come in to help, but they always left soon after to make sure Pitch didn't turn up again in the infirmary. When it came up to midnight, he let the Yetis and Elves have their breaks for the night, as they had been working hard too. North took it as an opportunity for himself to rest and stretch out his legs, so he went to the Globe. It always helped to remind him what was important, just like the children's teeth.

Even though it was a good thing, North couldn't help but be upset that none of the lights had gone out. It just went to show that Jack's absence from his work didn't affect the believers in the slightest- and Jack himself must have felt the pain of that. In just one night that Easter went wrong, nearly every child in the world had stopped believing in the Guardians, but with Jack missing for nearly a week, not a single boy or girl had stopped believing. Even though the Spirit of Fun had always plastered a smile across his face and acted as if he was the happiest person in the world, North knew that deep down he was broken and damaged. His lack of believers didn't help.

Santa walked to the four triangles in the ground where the Guardians' outlines were carved into rock. It suddenly hit him that they hadn't put in one for Jack, even though he was a Guardian now. He felt terrible. Jack must have felt awful that he hadn't been put in there, but he was too kind and modest to ever mention it. He'd have to get that done soon. North looked up through the skylight to the Man In The Moon, staring at his bright face for a long time before he could summon up words.

'Man In Moon... You know, of course, that Jack is hurt... Hurt very badly. I am scared for his life, and I am trying everything I can to help him, but I just...' North sighed heavily and looked down. 'I have no idea what to do. Please, Manny, he needs you. Anything that could help, no matter how small, please... Let me know.'

He gazed up at the bright moon, but there was nothing. The Man just continued to watch down, but he did not stir. North walked away and back to the library to continue his work, but not before checking in on the others.

In the infirmary, the three Guardians were woken suddenly by the opening of the door- they jumped up out of their seats and prepared themselves to fight, but to North it was hilarious. They were disorientated from only just waking up, so their eyes barely focused on anything- Bunny was facing the complete wrong direction, and North laughed, causing him to turn on his feet the right way.

'North?' Bunny asked dizzily, his fur all matted and frizzy from the shower and lying awkwardly while it dried.

'Yes, is me.' North managed to stop himself from giggling, and wiped away a few tears of joy. That was one of the first times he had truly smiled for what felt like forever, and warmth blossomed inside of him. 'I came to check on you and Jack. How is everything?'

'Uhh... We're okay I think.' Tooth scrubbed her eyes with her fists.

Sandy flew up in North's face, making little z's above his head and showing the four original Guardians in sand. His expression was one of worry, and North had to concentrate hard on the images he conjured from gold to see what they were and what they meant.

'You all too?' North looked past the little man to Bunny and Tooth. 'I thought I was just getting tired... I didn't realise you all have been too.'

'What do you-' Tooth stopped to yawn, putting a delicate hand over her mouth. '-sorry- think is causing it?'

'Pitch is up to something bad again. I feel it... In my belly.' North clutched his fat stomach like a burger.

Sandy made a picture of a book, the pages flicking from beginning to end, and he grinned up at the Spirit of Wonder.

'Of course you can, Sandy!' North patted the tiny man on his back, and a small drift of dream sand floated off him like dust. 'Tooth, Bunny, you stay here and keep eye on Jack. Try not to fall sleep, but if you must, do it in shifts!'

The two Guardians smiled back and nodded, and Santa opened the door for Sandy, who floated out and waited on the other side. North took a minute to look at the sick Guardian, trying to spot any difference in his condition. Jack's breath was still faint and slow, and he was in the exact same position they had left him in when they had changed his bandages. It was useless, though, as his wound never seemed to stop bleeding. It was Pitch, and North was sure of it.

"_I'll find something, I promise, Jack_." North thought, then shut the heavy door behind him, touching the wood delicately. "_I promise_."


	28. Receiving

In the library of the North Pole, the Sandman walked a small aisle of tall shelves, all filled with beautifully old books. The rows upon rows of volumes reached high up to the ceiling, and Sandy felt especially overwhelmed- he was barely the height of three shelves. There was a ladder on each bookcase to reach the highest books, but none of these had been touched as North hadn't got to this section yet. A long vertical window loomed over each corridor, and as Sandy was scanning the names of a few huge books, it suddenly got a lot lighter. Sandy turned to the window to see the Man In The Moon staring at him from high in the sky- his light gave this whole library area new life, every spine white and glowing in the bright sheen.

Sandy looked up at Manny hopefully, desperately searching his face for any answers. Without warning, the roller blind that would cover this tall window edged down towards the ground, slowly lowering until all natural light was cut off from the room. All except one tiny hole in the blind that let in a single ray of moonlight.

Sandy followed it as it moved, fascinated at the Man In The Moon's incredible power. Eventually, the stream of white seeped onto one single book, bathing it's ancient spine in light. This book looked like any of the others around it- a faded and tattered beige spine with mangled letters that Sandy couldn't read. It looked as if it glowed or gave off light of it's own in the moon's shine. The blind gradually began to open again, and the Moon continued on it's journey across the dotted sky. Sandy put his hands together flat and shook them at the vast expanse above him, thanking the Man for his help. It was just what they needed. As carefully as he could, he pulled the book from the shelf, but it was thick and heavy and nearly as big as him. Realising the easy way out of this, Sandy made himself a little tray of dream sand that he could fly it on and rushed back to the main table.

North was sat at a vast table, books all around him as well as mugs and plates and pens and papers, but so far he had still found nothing. He continued flicking through the delicate bindings until he heard the glisten of dream sand from around a shelf. He looked up to see Sandy turn the corner, carrying a massive book that North didn't even recognise. He had so many here, it had probably been hundreds of years since he had opened some of them.

'Sandy, what is it?' North shouted across the oak table, knowing that the golden man could be a little deaf sometimes. He looked up with elation, excited about the book- above his head was a huge picture of the Moon, and he floated the hardback over to the table, where North shoved a few books on top of each other to make space for this one.

'Man In Moon showed you?' North asked, and Sandy nodded ecstatically.

The two Guardians heaved open the wide pages, this book being one of the oldest in North's collection. Every bit of paper was covered in not only neat written out text, but also scribbling handwriting and sketches. Someone had added information to this book. After carefully skim reading every page up to the middle, they began to lose hope- but they had to admit, the drawings were exquisite and the riddles and puzzles and the handwriting were exceptional. North struggled to remember who had written all of this- it could even have been himself, but he had a lot of more important memories to store in his old mind.

Exactly half way through the book, where the thread binding shows through, they stopped. There, as clear as a diamond against a stone, was a drawing of the knife used to injure Jack. Sandy looked at his friend with a curious expression, then they started to read everything around the drawing. The text about the dagger continued on for many pages after the sketch, and the two Guardians read them with as much concentration as they could muster up.

'This... Explains everything.' North stuttered and brought his hand to his face, wiping his features down in thought.

Sandy made the sign of a cross above his head, and North shut the book and put it on a real transporting unit. They nearly ran out of the library, North pushing the trolley in front of him. A couple of lift rides later, they arrived at the infirmary. Sandy threw open the doors and they stormed in proudly, Bunny and Tooth looking up confused.

'We have information!' North lifted his arms to the sky in his joy, new hope finding him. 'Manny guided Sandy to this book, and it tells us all about knife. I'm afraid there's good news and bad news. We might have a problem.'


	29. Treating The Wound

'What?' Tooth's face lit up at the unexpected good news. 'That's brilliant!'

'Ah, not so fast.' North gestured for them to come over and see. He opened the book for them to look at, and explained while they read. 'This dagger, as I said, is pure evil. Pitch created it many years ago, but until now I did not know it's main purpose. It is a memory demon.'

'I'm sorry, what?!' Bunny raised an eyebrow and stared at North, waiting for him to say he was joking.

'It is knife when needs to be knife, but is whatever it needs to be in memories. This is how Pitch destroyed Jack's memories!'

'Wait-wait, how does a knife destroy memories?' Bunny stepped back.

'Was made specifically for this purpose.' North continued. 'As we know, Pitch has very good control of the mind. He has rediscovered his way into memories, then used the dagger for killing them. Knife acts like poison- just the presence of it in a memory is enough to erase it, so imagine the damage done if he uses it. And by use it, I mean make into whatever he wants. In memories, the knife can be a bear, a toy, a bed, anything. As long as it remains in the memory, the memory will be blocked from Jack's mind.'

'So you're saying that Jack's memories haven't been destroyed?' Tooth's face brightened yet again.

'No, unfortunately that's not what I'm saying.' North sighed. 'The knife's damage has to have been in the memory for twenty four hours for it to be erased completely- so any memory that's been attacked in the past day will still be in Jack's head. We can still save them.'

'But how on earth do we do that?' Bunny retorted.

'That part...' North paused, rubbing the back of his head. '...I have not worked out yet. Book does not mention any way of getting into memories. What book does mention, however, is how to treat wounds inflicted by dagger.'

'What do we need?' Tooth flew over to the cabinets in excitement, reading row upon row of labels.

* * *

North opened the great book on the trolley, scanning the pages for the right information. 'Hm hm hmm... Aha!' he pointed to a sentence. 'A pinch of dream sand... Sandy?' North looked to his friend, who smiled happily. The Sandman walked over to a small table and pulled out a metal bowl, where he dusted a little of his sand into it.

'Ahh... These are all medicinal things. I will get them!' North joined Tooth at the cupboards filled with medicines, and pulled down a few different bottles. He walked them over to the table, then measured out different amounts and put them in the bowl. 'No wait! Bunny, could you go down to the Warren and get me a few blades of grass?'

The Easter Bunny nodded and tapped the ground twice with his foot, disappearing down the hole. He appeared back to the surface a few metres from where he went down only seconds later, a fistful of luscious grass in his palm. He grinned proudly, to be met with nobody coming to get the ingredient. Instead, North was leaning over the pink flower that had popped up when the burrow had closed, plucking the petals delicately with his huge hands.

'Sorry Bunny, was only to stop you from questioning.' North didn't even sound sorry. 'There!' he twisted back to the table and threw in the petals, then stirred what he had created. He checked the book to make sure he hadn't made a mistake, humming and haaing. He picked up the metal bowl carefully and poured the mixture through a sieve, leaving only a liquid dripping through to another dish underneath. When the solids were separated, North referred back to the book.

_"The antidote must get into the bloodstream- the quickest way to do this is to wash the wound with it, or if that is not possible, to make the victim drink it."_

'Well...' North opened a drawer underneath the table and pulled out a plastic box with several warning symbols across the top. 'That was then, and this is now.' he opened the container and took out a sealed packet, then opened it. Inside was a sterilised syringe, the sharp needle covered to stop it from poking through the packaging.

Bunny stepped back a few paces and turned the other way at the sight, acting as if he was busy with something else- but the others knew that he was just pretending. He was afraid of needles, or at least they made him feel sick, but nobody ever teased him for it- nor did they ever mention it, as they knew their latest member wouldn't stop teasing the rabbit over it. North carefully sucked up at least half of the liquid, and it looked slightly pink in colour inside the clear plastic. He paced over to the bed, where he gave Jack a once over, then turned to the two Guardians who weren't woozy.

'Where should I do it?' North asked, jiggling the needle in his hand.

'I don't know!' said Tooth. 'None of us are doctors, so how would we know?'

'Neck.' Bunny spoke in a low voice that no one could hear properly.

'Pardon?' Tooth asked politely.

'Neck.' Bunny still refused to face them, but he spoke louder. 'His neck is the best place to do it, especially if you want it getting to his wound and head at the same time.'

'Since when did you know so much?' North looked quizzical, but intrigued and amazed at the same time.

'Well, let's just say it's not only Jack who enjoys a good book...' Bunny sighed and turned towards them, facing his fear. North looked sort of... proud. 'Anyway, I can't wallow in the corner in fear, because then... You know. I have to face this.' Bunny puffed out his chest, then stepped closer to the bed.

'Are you sure?' Tooth asked sympathetically. 'I don't think a fear that small would give him much more power.'

'Yeah, I'm sure.' Bunny smiled gravely. 'Even so, any power is still power.'

'Alright, neck it is.' North prepared himself again- not even he was too keen on this sort of thing.

Sandy hovered over and lightly turned Jack's head to the side, exposing his bruised neck. He held the cold head gently in place, and moved a few white hairs out of the way. North wanted to get it over with as quickly as he could, so as soon as Sandy held Jack still, he pushed the needle into his neck and fed all the contents into his bloodstream.

'You okay, Bunny?' Santa asked without sounding interested over his shoulder, still tending to the Winter Spirit.

'Yeah...' Bunny sounded weary, but Tooth was next to him if he needed her. 'Fine... Why wouldn't I be?'

'Whatever, if you need sit down, sit down.' North let Sandy turn Jack's face back upwards, and everyone was discouraged when they saw that nothing special had happened. Jack still lay unmoving.

'How long 'til this thing kicks in?' Bunny asked, looking at Jack with worry in his bright eyes.

'I don't know.' North sat down in an armchair for what felt like the hundredth time over the past few days. 'We have to wait and see.'

As there was space beneath Jack's feet, Sandy flew over and sat on the end of the bed and watched him intently. Tooth didn't sit down, she just hovered in mid-air, her hands gesturing all sorts of things to herself. She was lost in thought. Bunny stood in a corner, away from the others but eyeing up the situation. He needed to get over his sickness.

* * *

An hour passed painfully slowly in the infirmary, and the sun rose while they waited for anything to happen to Jack Frost. Cracks of light had seeped over the great ice cliffs outside not long after they had administered their drug, peeping through the windows and illuminating the room peacefully. The glow was bleached and cold, almost barren feeling, but it was beautiful. It certainly helped to lift their hopes. Another hour came and went, and the Guardians grew ever restless.

'Look, I'm just checking that you got the right ingredients, I'm not trying to wind you up!' Bunny lifted his hands in defence.

'I know what I did, and I did the right thing! Who's to say it was going to work anyway- this is book from hundreds of years ago!' North started to shout, pointing his finger at the Easter Bunny.

'Guys! Stop!' Tooth called out in anguish.

'Tooth, can't you-' but Bunny was cut off.

'No, really, stop! Something's happening!' Tooth shook a hand at them to come over to the bedside, and Sandy had already practically crawled up Jack's legs to get a better look at his face. He was moaning and mumbling in his sleep, showing signs of waking up.

'Did it work?' North enquired enthusiastically. 'Hah!' he laughed in Bunny's face, who just frowned in defeat.

Without notice, Jack's eyes burst open and he gasped in a huge breath of air. He looked at the ceiling and panted, trying to stop his head from making everything double. He felt sick, like he was going to be sick.

'Wha...?' the Guardian started to sit up, attempting to focus on what was in front of him. There was something yellow directly in front, then something blue and green to his left, but he saw no more than that.

'Jack?' a deep voice cut through the boy's muffled hearing, suddenly bringing everything into focus. 'Jack!' North tried to get Jack's attention, but he just stared around with crazy eyes.

After at least a minute of Jack trying to breathe slower nothing had changed, as he still felt deep in panic. He could see now, though, and he looked up to see four figures huddled around his bed. Squinting and eyeing each of them up, he opened his mouth as if to speak, but only drew in another big breath and let out some garbled gibberish. He pulled his sheet up in one hand and clutched the cold metal bed frame with the other, flicking his eyeline from one Guardian to another.

'Jack? Talk!' Tooth called out, but Jack just backed away from her as if he wanted to climb off the bed and run away.

'Ah!' the scrambling on the covers made Jack's side ache and sting and burn like nothing else, and he cried out in pain. 'What... What did you do to me?!' he screamed, staring at his bloodstained bandages in horror.

'What?' Bunny hopped over. 'Mate, we didn't do this to you! Pitch did!' Jack didn't respond, his eyebrows just curved even more and he continued to hyperventilate.

'Don't worry sweetie, it was just a nightmare!' Tooth reached out to touch his arm for comfort, but he sharply dodged out of her way and pulled his legs in to get them away from the Sandman sat at the end of the bed.

'Who...' Jack paused, taking another pained breath. _'Who are you?'_


	30. REVIEWS PAGE

Right! I have decided that I will dedicate this whole chapter to your reviews :D

This is where I will respond if you leave a guest review, and screw it, I'll respond to non-guest ones here too (i'm too lazy to respond to them all in PMs)! I want to ask you to do one thing- if you do leave a guest one, could you leave a name so that when I respond you'll know it's for you? This will make it a lot easier for all of us. I don't mean your actual name, it could be anything! For me, it might be something to do with my fandoms like: Merthur, HobbitsInIsengard etc. You can change that name every time you review so that you look like different people, and that way it will stay even more anonymous. All you have to do is remember that it's your name and the chapter you posted the review on, and it will turn up down there! :)

I love hearing from you- it's the best part about updating! Please don't stop reviewing, even when this fic is finished, I still love getting messages any time of day from anyone. I'm here to please you guys, so if I'm doing anything wrong or doing anything right, do let me know!

Oh yeah another thing (sorry)- I'm British, so in dates when I write for example 20/08/2013, I mean 20th August 2013, just to let you know :P We do the month in the second column, so try not to get confused XD And forgive me for my British spelling (well, I'm not sorry), such as in favourite, colour etc.

**CHAPTER 1:**

_? (6/8/2013): _Haha, I'd never imagined it like that, as it was supposed to be hundreds of years ago, but I won't lie- that is funny XD I hope it doesn't affect the seriousness of the situation for you :P Thanks for commenting!

_Guest313:_ Thank you! I'm so happy you like it ^_^ And I know... I'm so evil ;_; I do feel terrible about hurting him... but then again, I chose to write it like this, so I guess I have to face the music *don't hit me*

_WinterKit18: _Ahahaa, thank you! ^3^

_MysteryGirl7Freak:_ I think that bad gut feeling you're getting is well and truly justified- don't lose it! It might help you out later on in this story ;) Teehee!

_ Bunymond: _What are you doing to me man... I actually cried of laughter at this review :') **BUNYMOND **gosh what fantastic English skills you have, Sammy ;) Yes, I have indeed decided to start calling you Sammy as well, as your initials are S.A.M, and I can't resist ;) Oh, this means you have to call me Dean hahaha or Cas, now I have his coat XD _I'LL HAVE AS MANY SNOWBALL FIGHTS AS I WANT EDMUND, **YOU'RE NOT MY MOM!** I'M A STRONG, INDEPENDENT WINTER SPIRIT WHO DON'T NEED NO BOSSIN AROUND! MY SNOW IS GUNNA BE SO AMAZIN THIS YEAR YOU WONT EVEN KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH YOUR PANSY COTTON TAIL, I'LL SHOW YA! It'll be like '68 again... WHAT NO i'm not planning on ruining Easter again NO WHAT WHERE'D YOU GET THAT IDEA *flies majestically away from you*_

**CHAPTER 3:**

_? (7/8/2013):_ I'm not so surprised, but I'm getting some now! XD Thank you! I'm so glad people like my story ;_;

_SUMMER:_ Ahaha, I guess you mean what Jack went through? Yeah, it was pretty intense and cruel- but not as bad as other fics I've read :P

**CHAPTER 9:**

_silversparklemoonlight: _Wow omg thank you so much ;_; I mean... wow thank you. Wow. Oh gosh I'm such a bumbling idiot when people compliment my writing :') I feel very privileged to have someone pull an all nighter for my writing! I don't think that'll ever happen again, ahah :) But thank you all the same! Also, about other writing- I have a fic in the making (been in the making since last September ;_; ) but that will be a long time coming, and it's about The Legend Of Zelda, so I don't know whether you'd be interested in that. Thank you for reviewing and reading!

**CHAPTER 13:**

_Inazuma ninja: _Ahah thank youuuu :D

**CHAPTER 21:**

_ColdKat:_ omg thank you so much ;_; Yeah I know... I'm so sorry I'm so mean to him... *hides* Something sadistic inside me makes me hurt him :( Poor little baby, give him a cuddle in your imagination. ;)

**CHAPTER 28:**

_astridlover 12: _Ah, I know I responded to you in a PM, but I feel like you need to be on here XD You left so many reviews at once, so I'm responding on your last one :) Thank you so much for leaving reviews, and I'm so glad you're enjoying the plotline (well, at least making comments on it) ;) And I'm not an awful person, I didn't kill him really!

**CHAPTER 29:**

_ambertiger22:_ Yay! I'm so happy you like it! :3 xx

_? (8/8/2013):_ Ahhhh thank you :3 I will update, I will, I've just had no internet- please forgive me! I hope you weren't cringing over waiting for the next chapter too much XD I won't lie, I hate leaving you with cliff-hangers, but I love it at the same time :D I'm kind of evil that way. Sorry.

_MagicCat321:_ I don't think you realise how happy your review has made me. ;_; asdfghjkl I can't even. AHHHHHH THANK YOU THANKYOUTHANKYOUUUU! *slams head into keyboard* Being told my fic is better than the film is just….. woah. *breathes heavily* omgomgomg I will update. I will update right now for you.

_? (10/8/2013):_ *Gasp!* Indeed! :) All will be revealed…

**CHAPTER 30:**

_TheDarkLordsHeir: _AHHH NO KITTENS DX Hahaha, I have indeed updated ;) I won't leave this fic until it's done! I'm so glad you love it ;_; As you may have seen, this is the first fic I have ever put up, and I feel really confident about my writing now! THANK YOU SO MUCH :D Please keep reading!

**CHAPTER 31:**

_TheDarkLordsHeir:_ Hehe, hehe *steps back slowly* hehheheheehehehe

**CHAPTER 33:**

_AinsleyWright: _Thank you so much ^_^ I will update one chapter a day- hopefully! I really am... sort of... trying to write ehhhh :P I'm getting so caught up in reading other fics . But don't worry! I will update as often as I can- as long as you keep reading! YEY :D

_ColdKat: _AHHHHH THANK YOU *squealing!*

**CHAPTER 34:**

_ColdKat:_ Thank you ;_; You're too kind, no, I can't take the compliments! *covers eyes*

**CHAPTER 35:**

_AinsleyWright:_ Don't worry, I won't ever leave you waiting for two months! ^_^ I'm so glad you liked it! :)

_ColdKat:_ I will, I will! Thank you :D

**CHAPTER 36:**

_AinsleyWright:_ Thank you! As far as I'm aware, I will be updating tomorrow :) Which part was it (as two were covered) that you love?

_alight:_ AHHHHHH THANK YOU :D Yeah, I've read plenty of the wander through his memories fics, and they do get a little boring after a while. Also, quite a lot of them don't really have context around them- it mostly starts with the Guardians going straight into his memories for no good reason in the first chapter, and that's why I really wanted to have a proper reason for them having to do so. I think it makes it more interesting if you put something before and after that explain things, so that's what I've done :) You have to work through the cruel chapters to get to the touching ones ;) Annndddd, it's going to get even more high stakes! I don't know whether you like that or not, but it has to do with earlier events. A lot of things are yet to be explained, as I really love (and I mean _REALLY_ love) having events and imagery from the beginning of the story pop up later on, making connections to otherwise unexplained events. By this, I'll give you a little hint, I mean (for example) that in chapters 21 and 23, there's the very tall house and the tree with the weird fruits. This, although at the time seeming like just a random scene in a nightmare of an ill mind, is actually a hint to a very significant event in Jack's life. AHH SORT OF SPOILERS XD Just like in that scene the tree grew Lilies, and Jack shouted out Lily in his sleep, I love making connections that make the reader go '_OHHHH_ THAT EXPLAINS_EARLIER_!' So there, I will shut up now because this has turned into a very lengthy response XD No, wait, you left another review, so let's try and make that one a bit shorter ;)

**CHAPTER 37:**

_twinpowersactivate:_ Ahhh thank you! Please keep reading! ^_^

_alight:_ Gah I cannot thank you enough! I know that feeling of writers being sort of bumbly, and quite often it makes me sad because I can see that they have really good and creative ideas, and the storyline is fantastic, but they have difficulty putting it into words and accurate description. I'm so proud to hear someone say I'm not like that, because I do feel like a really bad writer sometimes :P I've been writing most days for nearly a year now, and looking back on what I wrote last September- well, you can definitely see the difference in my grammar and my description. Just through the fluidity of me writing often, I've improved a lot without even realising it. And reading, too, reading helps a lot :) OH NO THIS ONE'S REALLY LONG TOO D: I HOPE MY OTHER REVIEWERS DON'T GET JEALOUS :P But yeah, thanks again :3

_Dreamer:_ Thank you so much! Ahaha, I already have beaten him up a reasonable amount, but I guess you'll have to wait and see ;) No spoilers here my friend!

_skulduggerypleasant4337:_ Ahahahaa! XD It's Mind Palace because I'm a Sherlockian, and I just liked it, but yes, I'm quite fond of writing feelsy chapters because I can do them reasonably well (I think anyway). :P Uhhhh, bad thing is, it's only going to get worse... there's plenty more feels to come, so if you thought this chapter was bad- AHAHAAHAHAAHA I'M LAUGHING BECAUSE I KNOW WHAT'S COMING AND I'M JUST SO SORRY AHAHAHA I really am so sorry for what's going to come quite soon... I really am. So sorry. But thank you, and keep reading! Despite the imminent feels! :3

**CHAPTER 38:**

_AinsleyWright:_ Aww thank you- I've finally caught up in age to my friends! I'm the youngest in my year :P Glad you liked it!

_twinpowersactivate:_ GAH! THANK YOU :D I will I will!

**CHAPTER 39:**

_SaiyanPrincess: _Haha, I hope that's good surprised :P Glad to hear!

**CHAPTER 40:**

_twinpowersactivate: _They dooo :( But they're the Guardians! Of course they'll sort it out ;)

**CHAPTER 41:**

_SaiyanPrincess:_ Aww thank you :) It is sweet isn't it? He really liked Jack, obviously, so why wouldn't he be trying to do something? He was surprisingly bitter, though. I was like 'whoa I wrote him pretty aggressive' O.o But I guess that's what harming a friend does to a person.

**CHAPTER 42:**

_AinsleyWright: _Thank you! =w=d (face is a special input from C.M) No you said it perfectly correctly :3 I will update tomorrow! HUZZAH

_SaiyanPrincess: _I work so hard =_= but yes, I am a dedicated author! :D Thank you!

**CHAPTER 43:**

_twinpowersactivate: _Glad you do! ^w^ Thank you so much for regularly reviewing! It warms my heart :3

_AinsleyWright: _Aww thank you! :) You're one of my constant reviewers and I'm really thankful for that!

**CHAPTER 44:**

_Guest (10/9/2013): _No spoilers here, sweetie! ;)

_SaiyanPrincess: _She is cute isn't she? :3 But as I said before- spoilers...

_twinpowersactivate:_ Ahaha, yes, Bunny has to feel manly ;) Thank you! I'm so pleased you like it.

**CHAPTER 45:**

_SaiyanPrincess: _Aww, I'm glad you think so :) and I most certainly will! You just keep reading!

**CHAPTER 46:**

_SaiyanPrincess: _Aw thank you! I hope the play goes well, but it's in January, so a little wait yet ;)

_Tigermike83: _Nobody's ever called my writing powerful before ;_; thank you so much *sobs* OH GOD WHAT TO DO WITH COMPLIMENTS?!

_lifelovelaugh:_ Aha! You will... I feel it! In my belly! ;)

_eliza-00:_ I'm sorry if I've upset you X( I mean, I want readers to get feels, that's why I write feelsy chapters, but DON'T BE TOO DAMAGED XD There's worse to come :( Anyway, I'm glad you liked it! Thank you for F&F-ing!

_guest2.0: _oh wow... wowowowowow I hope that's good XD I UPDATED TODAY HUZZAH!

_AlchemistLeigh95: _*BLUSHES MANICALLY* You just made my day. I'm just so filled with rainbows at everybody's reviews, and I can't believe you would just sit down and read it in two days, man I gotta give you creds because this is a pretty heavy duty story :P I do it with other people's, but I never thought anyone would do that for mine ;_; Don't get dehydrated though- drink lots of water and then you'll have plenty of tears to shed ;) I am totally ready for more awesome reviews from you *winkwink* YEYEYEYE THANK YOU!

**CHAPTER 47:**

_AinsleyWright: _I feel bad for him too, and it's me who's putting him through so much pain XD Oh dear, I'm too much of a sadist to be healthy really :) Thank you for reading and reviewing! Much love as always x

_SaiyanPrincess: _Ahhhh thank you so much! :D Keep reading ;)

_TheChemicalAuthor:_ I HOPE THAT'S A GOOD THING! XD I'M SORRY IF I HURT YOUR FEELS

_Guest (1/10/2013):_ YEAH I'M SORRY DON'T CRY TOO MUCH XD I'll curl up too :P

_xoeolo248: _*starts crying* oh my God thank you so much ;_; I haven't even had a single bad review yet, which is amazing! Thank you so much again! Plenty more loopdy-loops on the way :D

_AlchemistLeigh95: _Perfectly...? _Perfectly_? Don't lie. Omg. I'm totally ready, too. Thank you soooooo much. You're amazing. :D

_sherlockian: _Ahhaaha, calm down man! I've updated, I've updated... This fic is nowhere near done yet, so just sit tight! :D

_Tigermike83:_ Yes, and I'm sure it'll get darker in some places... ;) Thanks a lot :D

_alight: _Nah, he didn't really kill 'em :) It was merely a nightmare... Gosh goshgosh I love your reviews so much :O Thank you so much ouch ouch :D Hope you've collected yourself enough XD

**CHAPTER 48:**

_AinsleyWright: _Thanks once again Ainsley, it's wonderful to have your support ^_^ Every Tuesday ;)

_SaiyanPrincess: _Awh man thanks! :D Keep reading, yo :) I work so hard to get it right =_= I spent over an hour writing what's worth about 2 minutes of screen time in the film- this particular chapter was difficult because there was just so much happening at once, and I really like getting down to the nitty-gritty! This meant describing small movements and facial expressions in as minute detail as I could, which is... exhausting. XD

_Mackenzie: _Wowowowowowowowow ahhhhhhh thank you ahhhh :D :'D :') *cries* Plenty more twists and turns to come. I LOVE loopdy-loops! The grittier and more stomach churning the ride, the better I say! I don't agree with you about my writing, but yeah sure, whatever you say XD And I'm afraid to say Jack has a long road ahead... *giggles sadistically*

_Rim Alunatic: _SO MUCH SUSPENSE! Yes, apparently it's my specialty :P Ahhh, I'm so happy ;_; I can't believe you would read it all the way through! You are so very welcome :D

_twinsies: _*chokes* it's WHAT!? Best...? Ever...? You are a wonderful human being. I like you a lot. A lot a lot a lot. THANK YOU! :D

_Starry: _ACK THANK YOU *flails around* omg ;_; thank you so much ack ack ack I AM NOT GOING TO LEAVE UNTIL IT'S DONE! :D

**CHAPTER 49:**

_twinsies: _I'm sorry, I'm such a sucker for writing sad things ;_; Yeah, I feel like I'm slowly twisting my suspense knife in all of my readers... it's funny to watch you squirm :) woah... that sounded a little sadistic XD

_Starry: _Nah, I am totally evil. It's fun like this. I'm poisoning you all with suspense... slowly... :) Thanks so much! :D I love your reviews :P

_TennMayhem: _DON'T CRY I'M SORRY I REALLY AM ;_; REVIEW IT HOW YOU WISH! :D

_MuslimahHD: _Yeah I know... I just couldn't ignore the absence of a father in the film, so that's why I did it. Otherwise I almost definitely would have left the pair with a father! Blame the writers! ;) I update every Tuesday! ^_^ Thanks so much for reviewing!

_Guest (18/10/13): _Definitely not! Ahaha! XD I've only seen Lion King once, and I didn't even like it :P I am intrigued, however- which part did you think was a reference? Thanks for reading and reviewing!

_alight: _MASSIVE SHIT EATING GRIN ON MY FACE RIGHT NOW :D Thank youuuuuuuu soooooo mucchhhhhhh! Yeah, I chose to kill him off like this because of the earlier nightmare chapter (in the first arc). I hadn't actually intended for this, as when I wrote Chapters 21 and 23 the house and the fruit wasn't planned to be significant at all. At the time it was just me creating some weird dream scene, but then I realised I could do something with it and so this chapter was born :) It was actually your first review that I told you about the foreshadowing in 21 & 23, I remember! Well, now you know what I meant ;) Wow though, I really did want it to read like a book, and I'm so so so so so SO happy that you enjoy the way I write :D THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN, KEEP READING AND REVIEWING!

_sherlockian: _ANGSTANGSTANGST :D

**CHAPTER 50:**

_Kyokuu: _Oh gosh oh gosh oh gosh ;_; when you say 'for this', whaddya mean? This chapter? The whole story? I'M INTRIGUED! And it's not the top story because the top stories are much better XD GOSHGOSHGOSH I AM HOLDING IN THE SWEAR WORDS I WOULD USUALLY USE TO PRAISE YOU GOLLY DARN GOSH Thank you! Ack! You're amazing. (P.S: you're the first reviewer to ever call me by my name and therefore you hold a special place in my heart ;) )

_twinsies: _I can barely sit down at all your reviews! I'm super excited for the next arc, too, but we have a couple of retells to get through first, then a couple of my own creations, including our favourite OC! ;) I will let you all know in the A/N when the third arc starts (and I still haven't come up with a name). Thanks so much for reviewing!

_starry: *CHOKES AND DIES* _You what?! Best?! Nope. ;_; THANK YOU THANK YOU THANKYOUUU

_MuslimahHD: _Ahaha, short review? Are you kidding me? That's one of the longest I've had so far :P If you consider this short, I can't wait to read your full reviews... I think I get what you mean- it's either that Jamie is acting sort of like an older brother, but is obviously like a younger brother, or you're suggesting that Jack is the older brother and Jamie's the younger? Either way, I totally agree ^_^ They're very brotherly with each other, and Jack is very protective of Jamie, which I think is one of the reasons many people view him as Lily's however-many-great-grandson. I do like the idea that they're distantly related, especially with how similar Lily and Jamie look :) *_EATS VIRTUAL PASTRY LIKE IT'S MY LAST MEAL ALIVE_* You'll find out soon... Hope you feel better! :D Thanks so much for reviewing!

**CHAPTER 51:**

_AinsleyWright: _Then review a hundred times! XD Haha, it will be up tomorrow :) Thanks as always!

_SaiyanPrincess: _You're very welcome! Thank you so much! :D

_Starry: _Sandy is totally awesome! I love him :3 JUST CRIES WITH THANKS IM JUST GOING TO CRY ;_; Ahahaha what makes me 'British at heart'? The fact that I queue politely? That I live with miserable weather 340/365 days a year? That I like tea, and biscuits, and crumpets? I wonder, wot wot old bean ;)

_MuslimahHD: _I don't even know how he coped with this. I guess it was the three hundred years :( Yeah, it's a sad kind of beautiful that he wasn't even bothered by his own death, as long as he saved his sister. He's actually a very complex character if you look closely at his dialogue and the way he acts, and I have a lot of respect for the writers for cramming so much into his character with such subtlety and skill. He was perfectly written, I think, and I try to grasp onto the sensation that he's very selfless but still hurting emotionally in my writing, but who knows if it shows. That's actually a really interesting point... I have always wondered why 'Lily' didn't seem very affected by her brother's death- I doubt that the Man In The Moon erased their memories, but it's an interesting theory. The only thing I seem to be able to come up with is that Jack was possibly in the lake for more than a day. but then that seems unlikely too- but who knows. We certainly know that a reasonable amount of time passed before he was made into 'Jack Frost', as it was still day time (albeit sunset) when he fell in. I don't think she was playing in the first scene, however- I think she was talking to adults the majority of the time. She certainly didn't seem happy. Maybe she was asking if they could help her? I'd like to know what William Joyce and the other writers have to say about it :) Gosh gosh gosh THANK YOU :D Keep reviewing- I love 'em!

_sherlockian: _~You and me against the rest of the world~ ~THE BLOOD PUMPING THROUGH YOUR VEINS~ Oh gosh your review is just so mental I LOVE IT XD I laughed so much :') You keep on waiting, don't cry/laugh (?) too much! :P Thanks again! ^_^

**CHAPTER 52:**

_SaiyanPrincess:_ I feel bad for him too ;_; I'm sorry about this chapter! You're very welcome- I work for you all. :) You guessed right...

_AinsleyWright: _It just... it felt right. I'm sorry... I'll miss writing her- she was a joy to create and a lovely character to put into words. *hands you a tissue*

_Guest (29/10/2013): _I'LL JUST CRY WITH YOU MAN, IT HURT A LOT TO WRITE THIS :( I'm pretty in denial about the fact I wrote this... *gives you hot chocolate*

_Starry: _God I know it's sad... THIS IS ALL MY FAULT :'( Damn straight I'm British at heart ;) JACK CAN SING! I LIKE TO IMAGINE HE CAN ANYWAY XD Well, Chris Pine sure can... Look on youtube, just type in 'Chris Pine singing' and there's a song on there. It's so weird because it's so different, and it's not at all the way Jack would sing this gentle song, but it's still his voice! :) Goodness me, I'm so flattered! You really think I could write professionally...? Whoa man. Thank you. Thank you so much. I LOVE your reviews, so don't stop! Thanks for calling me by my name ;)

_AlchemistLeigh95: _I'm glad you thought the name was alright- simple, yet effective I hope! Yeah, a couple of people took guesses correctly- I suppose it was quite obvious. The next one will be happier- it's going to be a retell, so nothing too exotic :P *hands you some tissues and pats your back* Don't cry man! Ehehe, Jamie is busy right now...

_MuslimahHD: _Mine too, man, mine too :( Well, the truth is that she didn't have to die, but I decided to because I wanted Jack to have an event really hit home that he is very powerful, and his frost can be dangerous. That was where she came from, actually- that was how I created her. I wanted to have some kind of revelation that would make Jack unsure of his own powers, especially emphasizing to the Guardians that when he causes deaths and injury, he doesn't always mean it. It's not all a game to him, and I think (judging by their behaviours in the film) that the Guardians didn't ever think that perhaps he didn't know enough about controlling his powers to be safe, instead believing that he enjoyed causing destruction. Of course, he does to a certain extent, but I don't think he would ever be happy at causing a death or an injury. Enough of an explanation for you? That probably made no sense whatsoever :P I wrote the song myself- I'm so proud you thought it was beautiful. My feels exploded, too... How do you think I felt _writing_ this? :'( Thank you so much for reviewing :) I always appreciate them.

_TheChemicalAuthor: _I KNOW D': I'm so sorry... I'm so sorry... My lickle baba :(

_wmn130: _Wow wow wow thank you thank you! :D Well, I'm not asking you to like her :P It's fine by me if you're not keen ^_^ Ah, about more Pitch and Jack action... there will be more, of course- neither of them are going down that easily! I presume you mean a yaoi kind of Blackice, but I'm honestly not into any pairings for ROTG- OC or not. It just doesn't work for me for some reason, so none of that here I'm afraid :) Well, the next chapter is here, and not that great... Thanks for reviewing!

_DogsLiveOn: _Of course there are! Very soon after you reviewed I updated ;) Keep reading and keep reviewing- I presume this means you like the story XD

**CHAPTER 53:**

_Mackenzie: _Oh gosh gosh thank you thank you! ;_; I WILL KEEP WRITING! FOREVER! Thank you. Thank yoouuuuu

_SaiyanPrincess: _Haha, thank you so much! Just two more and I'll be there! ;) All thanks to you all! You are very very welcome. :D

_wmn130: _MOREMOREMORE! :D Haha, no, they didn't forget! Look at the second paragraph :) THANKS for reviewing! Much appreciated, as always!

_TheAuthorThatMustNotBeNamed: _Thank you so much! Moral support is always needed here :P I'm pretty bad at convincing myself I'm good at writing, so your reviews are greatly appreciated.

_Tigermike83: _Thank you very much! ^_^ Please keep reading and reviewing, I know you will ;)

_chantelle: _**100th REVIEW!** FIESTTTAAAAAAA! MON PETITE CROISSANT OUI 100 OUI OUI! I don't even know how to respond to this, Chantelle, I really don't XD Oh gosh, you are just so perfect it hurts man it hurts ;_; I LOVE YOU! I'm sorry for ripping out your heart I will 1) smooch it better 2) cuddle it better 3) call da ambooluns ;) You are wonderful at reviewing. I just love you so much gosh *cries 5ever because it's one more than 4ever* jfc yes i did just say that ahahaha yes, i will let you love me like I'm a hot pie yes :* I will keep going for you, precious little baboo, i would write forever! P.S: I can't believe you actually waited until it got to 99 reviews because that is a complete babe thing to do and i love you super extra much

_starry: _I COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND YEEEEAAAAHHH CELEBRATE ME ACTUALLY WRITING A HAPPY CHAPTER XD Thank you so much! I didn't think I did it justice, but you've made me feel much better about it :3 I'm so humbled that I keep you entertained ;_; usually the only kind of entertainment I'm good for is dancing badly for people so they can laugh at me ;) Of course I will keep on writing! Just as long as you keep on reading :) Thanks again, it really means a lot.

**CHAPTER 54:**

_SaiyanPrincess: _Thank you so much! ^_^ Haha, yeah I think everyone did ;) Even if they won't admit it! *does a stupid salute* you're very welcome!

_Guest (10/11/13): _Next chapter! :)

_MuslimahHD: _It totally SUCKS! It hurt enough having to watch it over and over again in the movie to write this :P But yeah, he's got plenty since the film came out ;)

_wmn130: _That will come next chapter! Of course I left it for last XD Thanks so much! I love YOU! ;) Thanks for reviewing, you bring smiles to my face every time.

_e: _Ahaha, that is truly humbling ;_; Thank you so much! I will KEEP DOING WHAT I'M DOING! Yeah! :D

**CHAPTER 55:**

_SaiyanPrincess: _Very very very cute ^w^ Teehee! Coming up next chapter, the death scene! I'm sure you saw in my A/N. I really... I'm not sure how I'm going to write their reactions. It's going to be difficult, definitely. I hope to start writing tomorrow, perhaps getting it up on Friday, maybe Saturday :) You're super dooper mooper welcome! Thanks so much for reviewing :D

_MuslimahHD: _SUPER ADORABLE! Ahaha, beautiful if it had happened in real life, not so beautiful described in my writing XD Thanks for reviewing, once again :)


	31. Remember Remember

'HELP!' Jack Frost shouted as loudly as he could, knowing that he couldn't run away with these injuries. 'HELP ME, I'VE BEEN KIDNAPPED!' he screamed, and the Guardians stared on in utter disbelief. They couldn't move. A Yeti burst through the doors, terrified that something horrible had happened. North shooed him out pathetically, and he simply walked out and closed the doors behind him, as confused as anyone else.

'Jack, calm down!' Tooth was going to put another hand out, but she refrained.

'How... How do you know my name?!' Jack stared at her with glazed over eyes. 'Wait... How...' he stuttered, and his breathing almost came to a standstill. 'You... You can see me?'

'Of course we can!' Bunny grinned at him to try and comfort but it didn't work.

'Thank God!' he smiled, and exhaled heavily he was so relieved. 'Nobody back there... Nobody could see me. They could just... Walk through me. How...? I... Wait, my sister! Where's my sister? Where am I...? **How did I get here?!**'

'Slow down, slow down!' North spoke clearly and firmly, hoping that it would catch on with Jack. 'You got here because we brought you here. You got hurt, very badly hurt, and you're here to get better.'

'Better?' Jack blinked aggressively. 'But... I don't remember being hurt... My sister! Where's my sister?!' he cried out again, meeting all the others' gazes.

'Jack, you don't have a sister.' Bunny said calmly, only to be met with an angry expression.

'Of course I do!' he shouted angrily. 'Now where is she?! What did you do to her?! If you touched her, I will not hesitate to-'

'Woah! Easy, easy!' Tooth comforted. 'We don't know about your sister, and we don't know where she is. Please, believe us!'

'H-how do you know me...?' Jack tilted his head to one side. 'I've never met you before.'

'We're...' North paused. 'Old friends.'

'But I've never met you in my entire life! _Wait..._' Jack had a sudden revelation. He pointed feebly and in disbelief towards the four figures in front of him. 'You're... You're Saint Nicholas! And you... You're the Tooth Fairy, and the Sandman, and the Easter Bunny!' he looked delighted- Jack's face instantly lifted, and the Guardians all smiled too.

'Yes!' North grinned. 'That's us!'

'Hey now, look, I know I haven't been the best behaved kid, but when times are hard... I...' Jack stumbled on his words and rubbed his head as if he had a headache. 'What I did to get on the Naughty List...'

'Oh, quite a few things!' North laughed heartily.

'Really?' Jack looked up, a terrified expression plastered onto his features. 'I'm... I'm sorry... I don't know what I did, or why... What's happening to me?'

Nobody could respond for a long time.

'You're... Losing your memories.' Tooth tried to say it gently, but out loud it sounded horrible.

'I'm _what_?' Jack questioned.

'Your sister, mate, who is she?' curiosity won over Bunny, and he just had to ask.

'Sister?' Jack stared at him with an idiot face. 'I don't have a sister. What are you talking about?'

'But you... You said...' Bunny stuttered, hardly believing this.

'Oh!' Jack smiled and pricked up. 'Is she the one with the brown hair? A few years younger than me?'

'I don't know- she's your sister!' Bunny shrugged in disbelief.

'My sister? I have a sister?' Jack repeated himself, seemingly barely able to keep a memory for more than a few seconds.

'Jack, before any more questions, you have to lie back down.' Sandy made slowly changing images above his head, and Jack looked confused.

'What? Why?' he retorted, pulling a sheet up over his legs. Somehow, his trousers had survived all the attacks and years of wear.

'You're very hurt.' Tooth carried on. 'Moving even a little bit will only make it worse.'

'But I... I don't really feel that hurt.' Jack looked down at himself, noticing the blood on his front.

'We gave you medicine- it must still be working.' North smiled, and the clueless Jack Frost felt welcomed. He was no longer afraid of them.

'Well, I feel fine, so I'll do what I want.' Jack remained stubborn.

Tooth pleaded with her eyes, 'Please lie-'

'No!' Jack responded. 'I don't have to listen to you!'

Tooth was offended- this wasn't like the Jack they knew. But then again, nothing about him was like the Jack they knew anymore. Prompted by his arrogance, Jack hopped off the bed, but straight away regretted it and nearly toppled over. After regaining his balance, his eyeline lifted and his whole expression dropped. He walked slowly over to a little table and stared at the lamp on it.

'It's...' he paused, picking it up and observing every inch of it in wonder. 'It's _magic_!'

'What?' Bunny looked at him like he was an idiot.

'How do you do it?!' Jack jumped a little, but not too hard or his insides would ache.

'He has no idea what electricity is.' Tooth stated bluntly, but none of them could really believe this.

'Electri_what_?' Jack asked, then moved on to another object- a little toy train that he held quizzically. It had a key in the side, and he turned it instinctively, and jumped in fright when the wheels started to move. He put it on the floor and let it crash into the wall, and laughed joyously. The Guardians watched, feeling a strange sort of elation. This was weird.

Jack bounded around the room like a hyperactive toddler, turning switches on and off and trying out everything he could. It was all hilarious- he chuckled all the time, not feeling any pain at all. That was even weirder.

Jack ran over to the window, gazing out across the wintery landscape. He'd never seen anything like it- he'd rarely left Burgess in his entire life.

_'Wow..._' was all he could muster up, and even then only in a whisper.

'Beautiful isn't it?' North walked over to his side and looked out too. Jack didn't take his eyes off it for a second. After a few minutes, the damaged Guardian cried out and jumped backwards away from the window in fear.

'Jack, what's wrong?' Tooth was more concerned than ever now that he didn't have his memories.

'I... I have...' Jack stuttered and held his head in his fists. 'A mirror! I need a mirror!'

As quickly as he could, Sandy flew over to a cupboard and brought out a small mirror, then handed it to Jack. He tentatively took it and gradually angled it towards his own face. As soon as he could see himself, he gasped and looked even closer, practically touching the glass with his nose. He suddenly lost his grip of it, but instead of it falling to the floor, a huge gust of wind took it and threw it at the wall. It smashed and fell in shattered shards to the ground, and he just stared wide eyed at it.

'I...' he stuttered, stepping back until he hit the wall. 'I have white hair! And blue eyes! WHITE AND BLUE!' Jack shouted in disbelief and clutched his hair in his fingers.

'You always have done, Jack! Why so scared?' North almost laughed this was so strange.

'I... I have brown hair! And amber eyes! Why do I have old man hair?!' Jack pushed his palms against the wall behind him.

'Hey!' North pointed a finger threateningly at him. 'White hair is not "old man hair"!'

'Mate, you don't have brown hair or brown eyes. You never have done.' Bunny explained calmly.

'I do! Just like my sister! And I'm so pale... I look _DEAD_!' Jack shouted and his eyes were drawn to the corner of the room. What he saw made his knees give way. He slid to the floor and sat there feebly.

'Is it your wound?' Tooth flitted over, but Jack didn't even move. He just stared in the corner. The Guardians looked round, and there in the corner was his staff, leaning against the wall.

'It's... It's because I _am_ dead.' they turned back to Jack, and noticed the tears slipping silently down his solemn face.

'Now that's just a whole new level'a crazy!' Bunny laughed, and everyone looked at Jack in concern.

'No... It's not... I remember...' Jack sniffled and pulled his legs in tight to his chest. 'I _died_... I remember things...'

'What sort of things?' North stepped closer, but was met with a strong gust of freezing wind in his face. He realised it meant Jack wanted them to keep their distance.

'The moon. The Man... I'm Jack Frost! That... That stick is mine. I can... Do _things_ with it. Magical things... You believe me, right?!' Jack's face betrayed the manic thoughts rushing through his head. Truthfully, he was just as confused as everyone else. He had so little memories, and a few were coming back to him, but they didn't make sense. Their context was missing, and he had a task trying to understand them.

'Of course we do!' Tooth smiled.

Sandy grinned as well and made lots of little scenes of Jack using his powers. One struck Jack like lightning on his memories. It was of when they were fighting Pitch, just before Sandy had died.

'You...' Jack pointed at Sandy. 'You died! You're dead, and it's my fault... I'm sorry...' he hung his head low. 'I'm so sorry...' he looked up towards the Spirit of Dreams and another tear cascaded down his flushed cheek.

Sandy simply smiled, making a few signs to show that he was fine.

'No... No you're not. It's my fault... I didn't get to you quick enough.' Jack buried his eyes in his knees. 'Easter Bunny... You were hurt... You were tiny!' Jack looked back up, but for once he wasn't laughing about Bunny being tiny, he sounded ashamed. 'I messed up... That man...' Jack sat bolt upright and froze where he was- quite literally. All around him ice splayed out across the walls and floor, erupting in reaction to his emotions. His tears froze on his face, and he started to hyperventilate. 'P-Pitch... Pitch Black!'

'Jack it's alright!' Tooth soothed. 'He's gone now, he can't get you!'

'No... No he can.' Jack giggled demonically. It was frightening. 'He's in here. He's in my head.'

'No, it's just a nightmare!' Tooth continued, but nothing relaxed Jack.

'Oh God... Oh Manny...' Jack's fingertips met the floor, and tiny swirls of ice webbed under his touch. 'I'm so terrible...'

'Jack, how are you doing that without your staff...?' Bunny inched closer.

'I... I don't know.' he looked at his palms curiously. 'But everything I've done... I'm a horrible person... Forgive me. Please forgive me.'

'What are you on?' Bunny huffed.

'I'm... I'm so sorry.' Jack fell onto his side in the foetal position. 'Everyone dies because of me. I can't even protect myself... I'm useless. I'm so _useless_. Just kill me. Kill me again! I don't deserve life!' he sobbed on the floor, and the Guardians had no idea what to do. This whole situation was baffling.

'Jack, listen to me.' North said in a low voice, kneeling down so that he was at the same eye level as the sobbing spirit. 'You are far from useless. You saved us- you saved us all- and we are forever grateful to you for it.' Jack peered up and briefly paused his weeping.

'I... I saved you?' Jack asked.

'Yes.' North confirmed, staying put exactly where he was. 'You fought Pitch and-' he stopped when Jack curled up as tight as he could at the name he dreaded hearing the mention of. 'You really did save us, Jack.'

'No I didn't!' Jack cried out, hugging his own head. 'I never saved you. You're lying! I don't remember any of this! I saved one person... One person in my whole life- and she died too. Everybody dies around me, and I can't do anything about it. I'm cursed!'

'You have saved hundreds of lives, Jack! Whether you remember them or no, you still saved them.' North beamed a smile at him, but Jack didn't dare to look up. What could they do? Jack was an emotional wreck, and nothing they could do would convince him he had done good deeds in his life.

Jack finally decided to sit up and face the Guardians, leaning heavily against the wall with his eyes shut tight. He just didn't understand anything. His whole mind was a mush of random memories, and he couldn't even determine if they were real. Inside Jack's head Pitch laughed sadistically. Jack jumped to his feet and scraped his nails into the walls, hearing the voice laughing at him.

'Wh... What do you want?!' Jack said weakly, swallowing the lump in his throat that rose from his fear of that voice.

_'Don't you remember, Jack?_' Pitch chuckled inwardly, revelling in the fear he felt. Controlling Jack's memories was one thing, but this? This was a whole new level of fun. Unbeknownst to Jack, he was using the memories of his nightmares and taking out the part about waking up. This made the Winter Spirit believe with all of his heart that those nightmares he had been given were real, and sorting the genuine from the false was a goal that he could never achieve in his current state.

Without warning, Jack started to shout to nothing. **'LEAVE ME ALONE!** I'm tired... I'm so tired and I... _No_, please! Don't go!'

'Jack, who are you talking to?' Bunny daren't move any closer.

'I can't... I can't be alone anymore...' Jack stared directly forwards, his eyes fixed as if someone was stood just in front of him, a little too close.

Pitch pulled a confused expression in Jack's head, trying to work out what was happening. This situation had spun out of even his control- Jack's mind was fighting back. But then he smirked. Pitch realised Jack wasn't fighting him, he was giving in. After all the days of breaking him down, Jack was finally starting to crack. This had been the best move he'd made in a while- only letting Frost remember bad things. If he had no happy memories, none with hope, none with wonder, how would he ever have those emotions in the real world? Everything was coming together nicely, and the Guardian's decision to wake Jack up had only made him worse. He would have been better off in his own little fantasy land, but no- the Guardians were always meddling. Pitch had felt the teenager's resistance against him increase when he had been given that... That whatever it was, but it didn't matter if the wound healed now. It was getting his head wounded that Pitch wanted most, and sure enough, he was achieving it.

_'What was that? You want me to stay?_' Pitch asked, and Jack's sight flew around the room.

'Yes... _Please_... Stay with me, so I don't have to be alone anymore. Alone in the dark... I'm so scared...' Jack Frost's bottom lip trembled, and his fellow Guardians looked at him in utter bewilderment. For a start, he was talking to thin air. Secondly, he was asking thin air to stay with him. But most importantly, he was alone. He felt alone and scared. The Guardians felt guilt pang to the bottom of their stomachs as they remembered all the little subtle hints sane and healthy Jack had dropped to show that he was frightened. It was only in his hysterical state that Jack could openly admit he was so scared. He still didn't trust them enough to tell them his worries. It couldn't get much worse than this. They knew that it hadn't been Pitch making Jack believe he was alone and scared- he just really was.

_'But don't you realise who I am?_' Pitch trembled at the pure terror seeping out of Jack's every thought. He quickly let his puppet remember everything about the Boogeyman, even the Pitch Black from his nightmares. A snowstorm started to churn the air in the infirmary, and Jack shut his eyes tight as the memories of Pitch flooded back into his mind.

_'Still want me to stay with you?_' Pitch asked, and the whole wall behind Jack coated in a layer of ice in mere seconds.

**'NO!**' Jack trembled, his knees pulled tightly together. His shoulders were pinned back against the wall, and he leant against it as if backing away from something. His eyes were still tightly shut, and his breaths racked his hollow chest that felt empty and cold with fear. 'LEAVE ME ALONE! PLEASE! I...' Jack shuddered in sheer exhaustion. 'I can't fight anymore... P-please, let-let me rest... _Please._'

The Guardians were in shock. They didn't understand half of what was happening, and they didn't know what to do about the other half. Jack was terrified. They had failed to protect him. It was like all the air left the room, and they couldn't breathe. A deep hole of emptiness gaped open in their emotions, and it was difficult to cope with all of this happening at once. He was talking rubbish, too, all that crazy garbling about his hair and his eyes and his sister.

'You...' Jack slowly opened his eyes. 'You killed them all... Everyone. In front of me... It was my fault. I let you do it... North, Tooth, Sandy, Bunny, Jamie, all his friends... Everyone. They're gone. Just like I knew they would be. I'm... I'm alone again.' he let tears fall down his ill face, where they froze and layered up on top of each other. The storm settled down, and only a chill breeze was left behind. A small drift of snow fell from the ceiling, and the five Guardians stood in complete silence. There was nothing they could say.

The figure Jack was so afraid of manifested from his very own shadow, and he didn't even move. His whole being was filled with such raging terror, he couldn't move. He was like a deer in headlights, and there was nothing he could do. In that second, Jack Frost lost all wonder, hope, importance and dreams in his life.


	32. Spilling Secrets

'Oh, this is too much!' Pitch giggled sadistically. 'The utter terror of Jack Frost _and_ the Guardians who failed to protect him! I haven't felt this much fear in years. Don't try to deny it- you're all afraid of what I'm doing to Jackson.'

'How DARE you call him that!' Tooth's voice cracked she screamed so loudly. The others were confused, but she was the one who looked after every child of the world's teeth, and she knew that was Jack's full first name.

'You've done enough, Pitch! Leave him be!' Bunny stepped closer and gripped his boomerangs, but Pitch lifted a hand threateningly and moved in front of Jack.

'I wouldn't if I were you.' Pitch said, and they heard a muffled cry of fear from their friend behind the Boogeyman. Bunny snarled in anger, barely stopping himself from kicking his enemy right in the middle of the face. That would leave a nice enough mark. 'I've got him, and I can kill him.'

'You wouldn't.' North glared daggers at him.

'Oh, just you watch me.' Pitch smiled, and the Guardians saw the power lust in his eyes. He wasn't joking. 'Maybe I'll be so cruel as to make it even worse for him, especially after you made that little nick.' he pointed to his upper leg which, on closer inspection, they could see had a bandage wrapped around it. Not that the Guardians cared.

_'What have you done to him?_' Sandy gestured above his head, shaking a fist.

'All that needs to be done.' Pitch clasped his hands behind his back and stood up straight. 'I'll be back soon! Don't try any funny business while I'm gone, because I still have control. It's too late- you're all too late.'

'No!' North bunched his fists up tight. 'Never too late!'

'_Mmm, well._' Pitch pinched his lips. 'How about some jokes? It would lighten the mood a little, hm?'

_'Jokes...?_' Bunny gazed at him in disbelief. 'Are you serious?'

'As the grave.' Pitch's face fell downwards. 'What do you call a boy with no good memories?' he waited for any of the Guardians to answer, but none did. They could tell this was going to be cruel. 'Jack Frost!' Pitch laughed.

'**Stop.**' North said firmly.

'What do you call a Guardian with no believers?' Pitch continued, not listening to a word the others said. 'Useless _and_ Jack Frost!'

The Guardians didn't respond this time. They couldn't.

'Hey, Jack.' Pitch said, turning on the spot. 'What's this?' in his hand was a flower made of nightmare sand, a lily to be exact. Jack looked up tearfully, but reached out as if to take the "plant", his hand shaking violently.

'Ah ah!' Pitch shook a finger. 'She can't be touched. Not now. Too late, Jack. She's gone.' in his hand, the flower withered and died, then crumbled away into nothing. This action devastated Jack. He wailed out loud and shook in fear and anger.

'This is_ sick_, Pitch.' Tooth spat her words she was so disgusted.

'A bit like_ him_ then.' the Boogeyman paced the room, and they watched Jack stand as if frozen. 'We could... Delve a little deeper, I suppose.' he smirked knowingly, evilly. 'Oh yes, I like this one!'

'What's wrong with you?!' Tooth squealed at the man of darkness- he was evil, yes, he hurt people, yes, but this? This was beyond even him.

_'How do you drown Jack Frost?'_ Pitch's back curved forwards as he cackled. Nobody else in the room understood, but he knew perfectly well. 'Oh, no! Wait!' he lifted his head as if listening to something. He turned to face Jack, who was pleading with his eyes. 'He wants me to stop. Ooo, resistance! He doesn't want me to say anymore... What's the problem, Jack? Don't want the Guardians to know? Cold got your tongue?' he walked over to his mind slave and reached out a hand, only to be met with freezing winds. 'You know, I really do find your middle name quite amusing, given the circumstances.'

'Pitch, whatever you've done, is done now- leave the boy alone!' North raised his voice, and the Boogeyman was caught slightly off guard. He still didn't care- the fear emanating from everyone in that room was abundant, and it more than fed his hunger. 'Like I said, I'm just on my way out.' Pitch began walking towards a deep shadow that pooled across the floor. 'But first, I think I'll let him feel pain again.'

Pitch disappeared deep down into the darkness, and the Guardians heard Jack groan deeply inwards. They looked to see him stumbling towards his bed, every step heavy and struggled, along with his breath. The pain he had been blocked from feeling suddenly rushed back, and his body couldn't cope with it. He'd been jumping and running and curling up, all things that would have caused agony if he had been allowed to feel it. It was too late now, too late for him to help himself or for the Guardians to get to him. Seconds after being released, Jack heard ringing and muffled voices far away and black spots dotted his vision, swaying the room from side to side sickeningly. He tasted the iron in his blood as it bubbled at the back of his throat, rising up onto his tongue. He suddenly felt and saw the ground very close to his face, and wondered why the world had turned on its side, before he felt his body crack against hard ground and then nothing.

* * *

Hey everyone! Just a quick little message to say a few things.  
Right... from now on I'm pretty certain I'll only be posting one chapter a day- I did warn you that I'm going to be terrible at posting, and look what you get. I didn't lie. I'm so excited at how this is going! I never realised how much I'd written until now, seeing it all in separate chapters- and there's a lot more to come (is this good or bad...? You decide!). There's a whole other story going on inside this story, and I'm pretty certain you can guess where this might be going. It's quite a popular theme in ROTG fics :P Ack, I just hope I've put my own spin on it.  
It's coming up to the turning point (just a few chapters away), when the subject of the story will change, sort of. :) It will be quite long, and I just realised that it is 1am and this almost definitely makes no sense to you, so I'm just going to shut up! XD Ehhh, uhhhh, a clue... hmm... _Jack Frost had something lost._ There's your clue for the second half of the fic! Yes, I did just say half. That's right, we're only about half way through.  
I'm so glad you like long stories. ;)  
I know I have to stop saying sorry for things, but one last one... I'm really sorry about the lengths of the chapters. They vary so much- from about 300 or so words to over 3000! It's really bad, but I close off a chapter when I feel it's right, not when they're all equal. The story would be very weird if I had to force myself to stick to a word count.  
A question: do you think this needs to be rated M? I'm just worried that it could be taken down, but I don't really see any other fics with an M rating. I did originally put it as M, but changed it to T because I thought it would put people off :P Yeah, let me know what you think, it would really help!

SORRY (I did it again) I RANTED! Bye for now my Guardians,  
Emily xx

Psssst... you... yeah, you... come here... review, follow and favourite my story... WHAT I didn't say anything! *whistles*


	33. New Hope

'How many _bloody_ times is he goin' to faint?' Bunny sighed, gesturing desperately towards the collapsed Jack Frost.

'Depends on how many times he wakes up.' North rubbed his eyes violently, then punched a hole in the wall.

_'You okay?_' Sandy floated over to him and lay a hand on his back. They were the oldest of friends.

'Yes, just... needed to let that out.' he said, yawning. 'Bunny, would you mind-'

'Yeah,' Bunny interrupted, understanding what he was going to ask, 'I'll get him.' he walked over to the sleeping Jack, plucked him off the floor and put him back in his bed. 'High time he starts passing out in his bed, not on the floor.'

'Bunny, are you alright?' North asked with sceptical eyes.

'What?' Bunny exclaimed. 'I'm fine! Why d'you ask?'

'You just put Jack on table.' North was worried, but he only just stifled a giggle. It was quite funny.

'I... Uh. Ahem.' Bunny didn't know how to react. He had put Jack on a table, and he hadn't realised it. He quickly corrected this and made sure that he put Frost on his actual bed this time.

'Now, what-' North yawned loudly. '-just happened to Jack?'

'What's happening to _us_ is another important question.' Tooth glanced over to Sandy, who was dozing where he stood. She gently tapped him and he woke up, but she felt tiredness pull on her senses as well.

'It's Pitch.' North said. 'He's trying to start what he did to Jack on us.'

'We need to get a move on, then.' Bunny shook himself down, then checked on Jack. He seemed alright, other than every injury on his frail body and that he had passed out from pain. His bandages would need changing soon, but they had more pressing issues before they all slipped into fitful sleeps.

'I think Pitch only let Jack remember bad memories.' North started, as they needed to clear up a few things. 'And if he's able to control his sensations- he blocked pain- then who knows what else he can do. This is dangerous game we're playing.'

_'Jack doesn't need his staff. Not for some things anyway.'_ Sandy signed, and the others nodded weakly. That had been a surprise.

'What about all that nonsense about his hair and eyes and sister?' Bunny exclaimed. 'Where did that come from?'

'Actually...' Tooth spoke for the first time, as she had known all along things nobody else did. 'He wasn't making it up.'

'What are you saying, Toothy?' North asked, stepping closer to her and Jack's bed.

'I am the Guardian of importance and memories, you know. I didn't want to have to explain while he was awake, as it only would have confused him more.' Tooth was quite vague on what she was talking about, obviously reluctant to admit anything. 'I've been... keeping this safe for him.'

Tooth went over to one of the cupboards and pulled out a wooden box that had been padlocked about five times.

'You sure wanted to keep it safe, huh.' Bunny smiled, glad that she had been doing something else to keep Jack safe, whatever it was.

'It's very precious. One of a kind.' Tooth said, unlocking every layer of protection. Once all the locks were off, she opened the chest to reveal a golden Tooth Box, then pulled it out and held it in her palms. Bunny reached out, but Tooth quickly pulled it away. 'No! You'll go into them if you touch them!'

'Alright, alright!' Bunny retaliated, lifting his hands in defence.

'They're Jack's.' Tooth admitted softly, looking down on the sleeping and battered form next to her with a pained smile. 'I took them so that Pitch couldn't get to them first.'

'Well? What's so special?' North asked, unsure what the Tooth Fairy was on about.

'He wasn't lying.' Tooth said simply, then turned the box onto it's side so that the end could be seen by all around her. 'I guess you missed it when he held it, North, at Easter.' They all stared at the little face beautifully painted onto the box, amazed. 'Jack had brown hair, and amber eyes. He was remembering from his past life.'

_'He wasn't kidding..._' Bunny whispered.

'No.' Tooth continued. 'He wasn't kidding about her, either.' she turned once more to the wooden chest, and pulled out the shelf Jack's box had been on to reveal another. Tooth took it out and held it in her other hand delicately. 'This is Jack's sister's.'

_'He really had a sister._' North swallowed hard, and the three boys all realised what this meant. If Jack had a sister, but he hadn't had any memories from his past life until Easter, he had never known about her. She had died and he had never visited her. He had never known she was alive.

'What was her name?' Bunny asked gently.

'Lily.' Tooth smiled at the name. 'Lily Frost.'

_'The flower..._' North had a realisation moment. 'Pitch did it to make him tremble.'

'Yes.' Tooth sighed, weighing up the boxes in her hands. 'See?' she pointed the end of Lily's box to their faces, too. There was the face of a girl, very similar looking to Jack's human self, with brown hair and amber eyes and a smiling expression.

'And- and he called out her name!' Bunny's eyes were wide with understanding. 'When he was asleep!'

'Yes!' Tooth agreed, remembering that herself. 'Pitch was probably giving him a nightmare about her, though, based on his tone.'

They all sighed. It was wonderful to know that Jack had a family, but why had he never told them? It hurt even more knowing that Jack had never known about her.

'I've thought about using these-' Tooth began, but was interrupted by North who instantly got what she was going to say.

'**To give him his memories back!**' he jumped up in excitement, finally feeling like they could do something for Jack. 'He just has to touch it, right?'

'No!' Tooth cried out in anguish, even though the others were ecstatic about the idea. 'No he can't!'

'Why on Earth not?!' Bunny laughed at her- why was she resisting?

'Because then these will be at risk, too!' Tooth put the boxes back in the wooden chest and locked it all five times, so that none of them would get in it.

'What do you mean?' North asked, and Sandy moved slightly closer to her.

'If Pitch has control over Jack's mind, as soon as we give him his memories back he could destroy them again.' Tooth explained. 'And that means that the memories in the Tooth Box could be destroyed, too. Plus, Pitch said if we try anything he'll kill him.'

'Well, we can't do nothing!' Bunny started to get angry. Just as things had started looking up, they were getting trodden on.

'But there's nothing we _can_ do!' North put his hands on his hips, and Sandy rubbed his chin in thought.

'So, Tooth, what you're saying is that if Pitch can't get inside Jack's head, we can give him back his Tooth Box memories?' North suggested out loud.

'Well, yes, he can touch them as long as he's not at risk.' Tooth said slowly. 'What are you thinking?'

'If we can somehow fix Jack's memory- his head- then we can give him his memories back. If we can undo damage done by knife, Pitch will have no power over him.' North waggled a finger in the air, excited at his idea. The dagger itself now lay in the corner of the room- as none of them had wanted to pick it up, they had kicked it into the corner and put a pile of blankets over it to hide it from Pitch.

'If Pitch could get in Jack's head with nightmare sand...' Bunny started, catching on to the idea. 'Then surely we can get into Jack's head with dream sand!'

'Ahaha!' North laughed heartily. 'Sounds like a plan!'

'No...' Tooth shook her head firmly. 'No, I won't go into his memories. It's wrong. If he chooses to show us or tell us, that's fine, but without permission? **No way**!'

'Tooth, it's the _only_ way.' North sighed. 'He will die if we don't.'

_'And I'd rather die than invade his privacy!'_ Tooth teared up at the thought of it. 'There can be deep, deep things in people's memories. We of all people should know that.'

'Yes, is true, he may be upset and angry, but is only way to save him.' North put a hand on her shoulder and looked deeply into her violet eyes. 'Trust us.'

Tooth paused, thinking hard. 'Alright. I'll do it. BUT! We don't _EVER_ use anything we see against him, alright?'

They looked down on his sleeping body, then jumped up in alarm. Jack started coughing violently and choking, gasping for air, but he was still fast asleep. It made the sound of a wet cough, as if he were choking on water, but that couldn't be possible.

'Turn him on his side!' Bunny barked, hopping over to the other side of the bed. The others did as they were told, and pushed on Jack's back to turn him onto his side. He still spluttered, though not so aggressively. It was only now his throat wasn't where gravity took anything even slightly runny that the blood in his mouth dribbled past his lips. A few coughs later, most of it was on the bed sheets underneath his head, with some still trickling down his cheek. He lay still and unaffected by the liquid on his lungs and slept only deeper.

'We're running out of time.' Bunny said with urgency, a worried tone lining his voice. He gently stroked Jack's white hair back from his eyes, and the others stared on in amazement. He wiped the crimson staining blood from his face with care. The Easter Bunny really did care for Jack Frost.

'Then let's do this.' North pounded his fist into his palm, a grin on his face.

'Yes!' Tooth pulled her hands into fists by her sides. 'Let's save Jack Frost!'


	34. Into The Unknown, Hidden, and Lost

'So, the plan, one more time for luck.' North lay his huge palms flat on the wooden table in the infirmary of the Pole, shoulders down and head lifted. 'We leave Tooth Box with Yetis to guard. Use dream sand to go into Jack's memories, remove knife or fix it's damage in each memory he has left, therefore Pitch can't control his head anymore. We wake up same time as Jack, so we have to be safe while asleep, and we give him his memories back from his Tooth Box. He will be strong enough to defend himself, and hopefully he'll be able to stop Pitch from getting back in his head. That all, Toothy?'

'The memories may be in any order- the first one we visit could be from childhood, or it could be from three years ago.' Tooth explained. 'Be prepared to be confused. Things might not make sense.'

'Right.' Bunny nodded. 'So how are we gonna recognise the dagger if it can be anything?'

'I... I don't know.' Tooth admitted, looking downwards. 'I think... We'll_ feel_ it. I can feel the real thing... I don't know about you. Well, I hope. We just have to search.'

'How long will we have?' North asked.

'As long as the memory lasts.' Tooth sighed heavily.

'Let's hope that's long enough.' North looked at her, but she didn't meet his gaze. 'Tooth, you've done brilliantly. _Thank you._'

The Tooth Fairy smiled up at Father Christmas with a tear in her eye, not quite sure of her own feelings. Sandy came through the door with a sympathetic expression on his face, floating slowly. He knew this was their last hope of saving their Guardian and friend, and it partly relied on him to get it right. Ever the patient one, he made a picture of a traffic light with sand filling where the red one is, with a questioning face on. He changed it to the next light down- the amber- then waited for a response.

'Yeah, ready as we'll ever be.' Bunny grinned at the Sandman, who pushed a thumbs up towards him. He had done his night duty, and they were all tired enough they could probably fall asleep on their own, but they needed Sandy's expertise to do it properly.

They all headed back to the infirmary, as they had been planning in North's office. When they arrived, there were around a dozen Yetis all scattered around the room. At the sound of the doors opening, a few who were around Jack's bed stepped back to reveal him cleanly wrapped up in new bandages and lying down flat. From the metal bars on the edges of the bed hung strings of fabric and thin rope, ordered to be put up by the Guardians. They would, hopefully, hold Jack down if he started flipping out in his nightmares, but they were strictly not to be fastened until he started to writhe.

Around his bed were four armchairs- ones that they had got used to sleeping in by now. The Yetis around the room stood guard, and Tooth passed her quintuple locked wooden chest over to three who would keep an eye on it in this room. They nodded to her to sign that they would take care of the Tooth Boxes, and she smiled warmly to signal that she trusted them.

'Right.' North clasped his hands together and rubbed them hard. 'All set?' A Yeti jabbered in Yetish and moved out of the way, and Santa nodded to him once in a very military manner. 'Sandy?'

The Sandman made his traffic light again and turned it to green, then went over to one of the four seats positioned around the sick Guardian. North handed over an envelope to a Yeti he trusted with anything, Phil, who met his stare with surprising emotion. Tooth handed one to two of her fairies, who didn't want her to do this, but knew that she had to. Bunny had dropped one down a burrow, but who knew where it would end up. Sandy had nobody to give anything to, so he had to continue the way he was.

Inside each letter were details on what to do if anything went wrong- the Guardians had accepted that this was going to be dangerous and that there was a risk they could die. For a start, if Pitch turned up when they were asleep, they would be powerless and wouldn't wake unless Jack did. If Jack didn't wake, neither would they. At least, that's what Tooth presumed- nobody really knew, but they wanted to prepare themselves for the worst if it turned out to be the truth. It was perfectly possible that if Jack died in his sleep, they would never be able to leave his mind, and would die with him. They had to entertain the possibility.

Emergency procedures had been given for a variety of different situations if they were to arise, and the Yetis and Elves were there at hand to help if need be. Most work had now been stunted, as everyone in the Workshop felt they had to be ready to help in any way they could.

The Guardians positioned themselves around Jack's bed, all holding hands with one another. They looked at each other with sad eyes, but bravery shone in them too. Then they stared down at their fallen friend, and knew what they were doing was worth any risk they took. Jack needed them now more than ever, and they refused to let him be alone and afraid anymore- he was one of them now, and he deserved every effort of his fellow Guardians.

'For Jack.' Bunny said with a weak smirk, his voice low while he looked at the bruised teenager beneath him.

'Yes.' Tooth agreed, squeezing the Easter Bunny's hand slightly tighter. '_For Jack._'

Sandy's dream sand started to swirl around them in beautiful streams, and a warm wind blew across their senses.

'See you on the other side!' North chuckled, and each Guardian felt sleep will them in with gentle lullabies and soft touches.

The world of slumber opened for the Guardians, and they joined their friend in the only place he could truly exist in his broken state- his own mind.

* * *

**And so ends the ****_broken_**** arc, as I have called it! **

There will be three arcs; broken, repairing and ?. Well, we'll just have to find out about the third ;) It won't be very long, don't worry, but the repairing arc will be about the same as the broken arc- so about the same as we've had so far again.  
Please keep reviewing, following and favouriting- I really appreciate it! Thank you for reading up until here, and so on we go to the second arc... did you guess it was going to be this from that author's note I made? I bet you did, you're smart :)  
But yes, read on, as the plot starts to deepen...

_'See you on the other side!'_


	35. Racing

'Where… where are we?' Bunny stuttered, letting the bright white light that shone around them fade. All four Guardians looked around and tried to focus on the scene, but it was currently just a jumble of swirling patterns and colours, and it was even more difficult to stay balanced with everything around them moving and changing. Slowly, the mess they saw before them began to take shapes and outlines. Every colour pulled together to make a scene, and after careful observation, the Guardians all realised where this place was- it was the Pole.

'This is a memory.' Tooth shuddered- she had always felt immoral going into people's memories. 'No… something's wrong.' She wandered around now that the ground was still. 'This one's nearly gone. We have to hurry!'  
She was right- the scene had seemed bright before, but they now noticed that the colour in every object or on every wall was faded and dull. Some of them were just fuzzy- they couldn't expect Jack to remember every detail. This place was controlled by his mind, but Pitch had taken his share of that power. They were in a corridor, one that they recognised, but it was a lot longer.

'Jack must remember hallway as being longer. It's not this big in real life.' North said, picking up a little smudged box from a shelf- another object Jack didn't remember.

'Oh no!' Tooth cried out in despair as they all watched everything turn black and white, like an old movie.

'What's happening?!' Bunny bunched up closer to them for safety, in case anything went wrong.

'It's been nearly twenty four hours!' Tooth squealed. 'This memory is nearly destroyed- come on! We have to find the knife!' She flitted ahead and down the corridor, and the others followed.  
About halfway down, they heard a clamour coming from the door at the end of the hallway. Suddenly, Jack burst out, flying with his staff in hand, laughing joyously.

'There's the Jack we know.' North sighed, and everyone couldn't help but feel sad at the sight of him happy and carefree.

'Jack!' Bunny called out, lifting a hand. 'Ah mate, I can't tell you how glad I am to see you!' but Jack didn't pay any attention. He carried on flying, and when Bunnymund stood in his way, the Winter Spirit passed right through him.

'Bunny, he can't see us- we're in a memory, a record of what has already happened.' Tooth explained. 'We won't be able to talk to anyone.'

'And you didn't think to tell us?' Bunny asked, obviously slightly shocked that he had just been walked through.

'I'm sorry, I just forgot...' Tooth rubbed her head gently and averted her gaze. 'A lot's on my mind.'

'Don't worry.' Bunny smiled. 'I just... Overreact a lot.'

'Come on you two, pay attention!' North called out, and they all watched the memory.

_'Keep up rabbit!' Jack cried out with a laugh, looking behind him to see Bunny following eagerly. _

_'One more time!' Bunny shouted ahead. 'I have a name, you know!'_

_'Alright, alright!' Jack turned to fly upside down, appearing almost relaxed while he flew. 'Keep up, Aster!'_

_'You stinking-' Bunny cut himself short as he sprinted, suddenly having a bright idea. He turned down a corridor just as Jack went down another, obviously scheming a way to get ahead. _

The Guardians realised that the end of hallway that they were at was rapidly disappearing- Jack's memory was fast moving, and this place would soon be gone.

'Let's move!' North ordered, and the others weren't unhappy to oblige given the situation.

They searched every wall and every object for the knife in any shape or form, but it was getting increasingly difficult as they had to keep up with Jack.

_'What the-' Jack said out loud when he turned his head to see that Bunny wasn't behind him. He laughed, obviously thinking that he was winning. When he came to the end of a path, he looked ahead to see Bunny stood casually in a doorway, his arms crossed and a proud look on his face. _

_'Took a short cut.' Bunny said smugly. _

_'You cheat!' Jack accused. 'No short cuts!'_

_'Well, you never said, so I presumed it was alright.' Bunny smirked. 'You said "first one there", and that was it. Nothing about short cuts, mate.'_

_'You took your tunnels, didn't you?' Jack pointed a finger at him and walked closer, his staff lifted. _

'Ah!' Tooth called out. 'I think I found it!'

The boys continued to argue in the memory, and the Guardians gathered around the Tooth Fairy. In her hands was a little wooden bird, devoid of colour.

'How can you tell?' Bunny asked.

'I just... _can_.' Tooth shrugged. 'Like I said before- it feels wrong.'

Sandy suddenly remembered something. How could he have forgotten? This was brilliant! He jumped up and down in excitement, and the others looked at him strangely. He animated himself with Jack's staff out on the ice when he was feverish above his head, and grinned joyously.

'Oh!' Tooth said, the only one who understood. 'You can do that _here_?!' Sandy nodded aggressively, making the image of the knife.

'Your new power!' North understood now. 'You can trace knife with it?'

Sandy nodded even harder, then touched the little bird. Just like in reality, darkness started to creep up his arms in thin spindly branches, and he felt that strange sensation he had experienced out in the cold. He tapped into the memory demon, then shut his eyes and turned the other way. He could feel it- he could sense it's presence behind him.

'This might be easier than we thought.' Bunny smirked, too.

'Ah! Don't speak too soon!' Tooth put a finger to her lips. 'You might jinx it!'

Now they had the knife, they put it in the bag Sandy made out of his dream sand and he pulled it tight. After a minute or so of him shaking the sack around and filling it with more dream sand, he made it disappear into thin air. There was no knife, no nothing. He had destroyed it, and he winked at the others and bowed.

'Obviously weaker here than in reality.' North sighed, as they had tried to destroy the real knife with dream sand, but the granules had only slowly turned into nightmare sand. At least here it was easier to get rid of it, as they didn't know if they could take things through to another memory.

_'Well, better luck next time mate!' memory Bunny called out as he walked away. _

_'Wait...' Jack said. 'Did you go to the Leprechaun for good luck?!'_

_'No!' Bunny retorted. 'Can't stand that guy! I mean, who uses rabbit's feet for luck? It's sick and twisted! Yeah he has excuses, like "only when they're dead", but who knows if that's true- he's a shifty fella if ever I saw one. I mean, seriously, it's wrong to mess with the dead anyway, right?' Bunny continued to walk off, ranting to nobody. _

_Jack smiled at the conversation his friend was having with himself, and he giggled slightly that he was so distressed. He knew the Leprechaun didn't really use rabbit's feet- they were just pretend feet, used to anger the Easter Bunny. No, the Leprechaun used four leafed clovers if he ever needed some extra luck, but it was fun to wind Bunnymund up. Pretty much every Spirit was in on the joke. _

_'Yeah, well!' Jack shouted down the hallway so Bunny would hear him. 'I'm still five races up on you! Don't get too cocky!' he laughed to himself and rubbed his head, his colourless hair ruffling. _

The scene before them started to turn white as Jack walked away, and the Guardians realised it was the end of the memory.

'Please be more careful when racing, Bunny.' North said with one eyebrow raised. 'I think this explains the occasional broken toy I find.'

* * *

Argh, I'm sorry, me again!

This is the first chapter of the Repairing arc, as we've now finished the Broken Arc. They'll all have a similar layout, but things are going to start to get interesting soon, as I reveal some unseen memories. There are some things the Guardians don't know about Jack Frost...

I'm really sorry if there isn't an update tomorrow, as we're almost up to where I'm currently writing, so I need to go back and edit as I got some bits wrong, and I need to check I got everything in! So, if I'm a day or so late, I really am very very sorry, but it's only so you get the best of my writing ;) I'll do it as soon as I can, but the next few days are busy days- I'm currently making myself a medieval dress and the deadline is tomorrow, and I'm wearing it to a medieval festival on Saturday, so I probably can't update then or Sunday as things are happening the day after and ACK! I'm so busy D: So really, I am sorry... I am trying!

But for now, thanks for reading, I LOVE YOU ALL! :D Fruit cakes (don't worry I won't throw them) for all!


	36. Chosen

The white light faded out to black, and the scene that appeared before the Guardians was that of a gently orange lit city. Their main focus was brought to one house, where they spotted Jack with his hood up, watching through a window. He hung upside down from the roof, and they saw that inside was Jamie and his little sister. He was jumping up and down with excitement, and Sophie joined him.

_'And it was like __**WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH**__ through all these cars! And then the sled hit this, this__** thing**__! And then it was like __**WAY**__ up in the air! And then __**BAM**__! The sofa hit me, and, and see? My tooth came out!' Jamie revealed his gums to his sister, them both ecstatic from the story. There was a drawing Jamie had done of the scene pinned up on his wall, and the Guardians looked at it fondly. _

_'Alright you, tooth under your pillow?' they noticed the children's mum for the first time. _

_'Yeah, I'm ready.' Jamie pulled a torch from his nightstand and shined it at the ceiling to test it after his room lights had been turned off. _

_'Now don't stay up trying to see her, Jamie, or she won't come!' his mum teased. _

_'But I can do it this time!' Jamie said enthusiastically. 'You wanna help me, Soph? We can hide and see the Tooth Fairy!' _

_'Hide, hide, hide, hide!' Sophie jiggled up and down with anticipation, and she wore little pink wings even though she was in her blue pyjamas. _

_'Uh uh!' Jamie's mum said, walking over to pick up her daughter. 'Straight to bed now mister!'_

_'Mom!' Jamie complained. _

_Their mum didn't say anything, she just rocked Sophie up and down and playfully cuddled her, and Jamie got jumped on by his huge greyhound, Abby. They looked like a perfect family. _

'This is the day Jamie lost his tooth, and when we... Urm, kidnapped Jack.' Tooth said the first part excitedly, but felt slightly guilty at the other half.

It was only then that the Guardians noticed Jack's expression reflected in the glass of the window. _He was smiling with genuine happiness, but they only got to see it for a second before it dropped away and he looked thoughtfully on the scene. Maybe he was thinking about family. He noticed the webs of frost that spread out across the panes and blocked his view through the glass, and he pulled an annoyed expression then promptly back flipped onto the roof. In the complete silence of the night, the Guardian of Fun- with his navy hood high over his head- pulled his staff in to himself. He looked up to the huge moon with wide eyes, bathing him in soft white light. _

_'If there's something I'm doing wrong...' Jack started to talk towards the sky. 'Can you... can you just tell me what it is? Because I have tried __**everything**__, and no one ever sees me!' Jack adjusted his grip on his staff a few times while he spoke, obviously thinking hard about what he was saying. _

'Oh dear.' North sighed gently.

_Jack suddenly looked frustrated- angry, almost- as he stared up at the Man In The Moon. 'You__** put**__ me here!' he said firmly, then softened a little, emotion making it's way into his voice. 'The least you can do is tell me... tell me why.'_

_Jack Frost stared without falter at the moon, squinting his eyes to search for any response at all from his creator. When nothing happened, he sighed heavily and scrunched up his face in an annoyed expression that also said "I didn't expect any less". He shoved his hand in his pocket and hopped onto a telephone wire that hung over the street, freezing each thin line of metal with his staff in one flick, balancing on them like a tightrope while he walked. Despite the emotion filled talk he had just tried to have with the Man In The Moon, he managed to instantly pull himself back into his playful mood. _

_Lines of golden dream sand illuminated the scene, and Jack turned at the light. He flicked back his hood and smiled with delight up at the sky, obviously happy to see Sandy's work. _

_'Right on time, Sandman.' he said joyously, jogging along the telephone wires to meet a tentacle of dreams that stretched out to the nearby houses. He lifted his arm up and jumped to touch the sand, then instantly ducked as dolphins flipped and dived around him. He giggled, and Sandy felt truly humbled. _

_Jack watched all the strands of sand fly across the sky in fascination, even though he had seen them a hundred times before. It was still amazing to him._ A sudden flash of light lit up the scene as if the sun was rising, but the Guardians knew that this meant it was coming to the end of the memory.

'The knife!' Tooth shrieked, then started frantically searching the place for any sign of an unusual or out of place object. They had all been so transfixed on the enchanting memory that they had forgotten to search for the damage- and now they were running out of time.

'Tooth, **Tooth**, calm down!' North moved his hands as if he were pushing down an imaginary object to signal for her to quieten down. 'Sandy, remember?'

Sandy smiled and nodded gleefully, then shut his eyes tight and focused on his senses to take him to the memory demon. His new power really had helped- and he thanked Manny for that. After a few minutes of following the trail, they came to a standstill at the side of a road. Sandy pointed to a dark green car parked outside an old shop, gesturing that that was it.

'It's the car?!' Bunny exclaimed. 'How are we supposed to get rid of a **whole car?!**'

Sandy shook his head aggressively and pointed several more times, closer to the vehicle. Another flash of light lit up the memory, and they could see Jack still watching the dreams from a telephone wire.

'_Inside_ the car?' North asked, and Sandy nodded in response.

'There.' Tooth pointed in through the window, cupping her hands around her eyes so the street lights wouldn't reflect on the dirty glass.

'Not very well disguised, if I may say.' Bunny said, looking inside the car window. There on the front passenger seat lay the knife, not changed or hidden in any way.

'I guess it was hidden well enough in the car for him not to bother to transform it.' Tooth suggested, and it was the likeliest answer.

'Let's get it out!' North suddenly perked up, remembering how little time they had left.

'How can we, it's locked!' Tooth cried out, trying all the doors and windows.

Another light flashed. 'Ah, who cares?' Bunny shrugged. 'Damage will be fixed later, when we give him the box back, right? So who cares if we do a little dirty work?' Bunny pulled out his boomerangs and threw them at a window, and the sound of the smash of glass echoed around the quiet street.

'**Bunny!**' Tooth scolded, hands on her hips. 'You should have let me do it!' a playful smile etched itself across her face, and mischievousness gleamed in her eyes. She reached in through the shattered window and pulled out the dagger, putting it straight into their bag. 'Job done!'

'Well, I think memory done, too.' North said, looking up and around as it faded to white.

Strangely, after that bright light they now associated with changing memories, the scene hadn't changed.

'Huh.' Bunny eyed up the situation. 'That's weird.'

Sandy's dream sand in the memory appeared to dissolve into thin air, and Jack was still watching as the town returned to it's normal state. The Guardians went over to see why this memory had continued, then Bunny remembered.

_Something flashed past Jack and left behind only a rustling wind, travelling at such a high speed it couldn't be seen._

_'Whoa!' he twisted around and instantly shot off to follow it. _

_Jack sped off into the night, in pursuit of whatever it was that was obviously trying to attract his attention. He set off car alarms in the street, then eventually ended up in a dead end alleyway. The thing whizzed past him once more, knocking over a metal rubbish bin as it did, and he held his staff low in defence, padding across the ground. _

_'Hello, mate.' Bunny's voice rung through their ears, and Jack shot around to face the rabbit. 'Been a long time- blizzard of '68 I believe, Easter Sunday, wasn't it?' Bunny fondled his boomerangs angrily, obviously wanting to strike out. Memory hopping Bunny got shot a look by the other Guardians. _

_'Bunny!' Jack said in a mocking tone, leaning against his staff. 'You're not still mad about that, are ya?'_

_'__**Yes!**__' Bunny snarled at the Winter Sprite, pointing the sharp end of a boomerang at him. 'But this is about somethin' else.' he pulled his weapon back into himself and stroked it gently. 'Fellas!' he called out, and Jack was taken by surprise. Two Yetis came out and grabbed him by the hood roughly, holding a sack. _

_'__**Hey!**__' Jack cried out in annoyance. 'Put me down! What the-!'_

Seeing as these were Jack's memories, they were from his perspective, so the whole world around the Guardians was plunged into darkness and muffled voices.

_Jack continued to complain even though he was now in a tightly fastened sack, kicking and trying to beat his way out. 'Let me outta this thing!' he shouted. '__**Bunny!**__ I'll get you for this! What is this thing? A sack? Oh, __**real**__ smooth!' _

The Guardians were suddenly sent tumbling around the blackness, until they hit solid ground with a thump. 'Ugh, I see why he was so annoyed.' North stood up slowly, pulling his senses back to normal. That had been painful.

_'__**Agh!**__' Jack complained, rubbing his head in the stuffy bag. Light returned to their vision as they saw two tiny elves peering into the sack, then jumping away in fright. Jack looked outside quizzically, holding the sack open._

_'He's here!' North's voice was barely recognisable through the fabric. 'Quiet!' he whispered to Tooth, who had been talking in French to some of her fairies. _

_Suddenly the attention was brought back to Jack, and the Guardians could see North and Sandy and Tooth all looking down on him and smiling. _

_'Hey!' North's voice could be heard, although still slightly muffled. 'There he is! Jack Frost!'_

_'Wow... You gotta be kidding me...' Jack looked up at the Guardians, half of his body still in the hessian sack. Two arms reached down and pulled him out, but luckily the Guardians didn't have to go through that. Instead, they could all see themselves in Jack's memories. That was sort of strange. 'Hey, hey, put me down!' Jack said gently, and was then placed onto his feet in the Globe Room of the Pole. _

_'I hope the Yetis treated you well?' North boomed heartily. _

_'Oh, yeah!' Jack said sarcastically, kick flicking his staff back into his hand and putting the other in his hoody pocket. 'I love being shoved in a sack and tossed through a magic portal!'_

_'Oh, good!' North replied. 'That was __**my**__ idea! You know Bunny, obviously.' he gestured towards the Easter Bunny, who was leaning against a pole looking bored. _

_'Obviously.' Jack smiled. _

_'And the Tooth Fairy!' North grinned. _

_'Hello Jack!' she flitted excitedly over to him. 'I've heard a lot about you- __**and your teeth!**__'_

_'My... my __**what**__?' Jack sounded baffled, which is strange considering he knew she was the Tooth Fairy. He shouldn't have been surprised that she was ecstatic about teeth. _

_Tooth continued to chatter. 'Open up! Are they really as white as they say? Yes! Oh! They really __**do**__ sparkle like freshly fallen snow!'_

_A few little Tooth Fairies fluttered around him, one of them squealing delightedly. 'Girls, pull yourselves together! Let's not disgrace the uniform!' Tooth waggled a finger, then flew away with them. _

_'And Sandman!' North tapped him on the shoulder, but he still napped. Sandy himself looked on, feeling slightly embarrassed that he had fallen asleep. 'Sandy! Sandy! __**Wake up!**__' Sandy jumped out of his dream and blinked up with a weary smile. _

_'Hey, ho, anyone wanna tell me why I'm here?' Jack asked. _

_Sandy put a finger up happily and made some pictures above his head of Pitch and the Moon and a snowflake, but it all ended up going too quickly and Jack couldn't follow it. 'Uh, it, that... that's not really helping. But-but thanks, little man.' he had bent down to Sandy's height, one finger bent and the joint in his mouth. _

_'I must have done something __**really**__ bad to get you four together.' Jack walked along, then froze a little elf with a tray which fell over motionless. 'Am I on the naughty list?' he turned to face them, a mischievous look on his face. _

_'__**Hah! **__On naughty list?' North said with what sounded like disbelief. 'You hold record! But no matter, we overlook- now we are wiping clean the slate!' he wiped his "naughty" arm off to gesture them forgiving and forgetting. _

_'How come?' Jack asked and looked at them quizzically. _

_'Ah, good question.' Bunny sounded annoyed. _

_'How come?' North boomed. 'I __**tell you**__ how come! Because now, __**you are Guardian**__!' _

_Music started to play and Yetis and Elves paraded around the room with instruments and banners, confetti flying everywhere. Jack looked truly horrified at all of this, backing away from the Guardians and trying to avoid whatever was happening. _

'Hey, Sandy, is this the same memory or do we need to find the knife again?' Tooth asked, ignoring what was happening around them. It's not like they hadn't seen it before.

Sandy promptly shut his eyes tight and focused on picking up the "scent" of the demon, but after a couple of minutes of looking, he couldn't find anything. He shook his head and shrugged, and motioned that the one in the bag was for this memory too. Now they just had to wait it out until the next memory.

_'This is all very flattering, but uhh... You don't want me! You're all __**hard work**__ and __**deadlines!**__ And I'm... snowballs and fun times. I'm not a Guardian.' Jack said simply, hopping up onto a table. _

_'Yeah, that- that's exactly what I said!' Bunny was trying to persuade the others not to let Jack become a Guardian. _

_'Jack, I don't think you understand what it is we do.' Tooth flew over and got very close to his face. Uncomfortably close for someone who'd spent three hundred years with no contact to anyone else. 'Each of those lights is a child.'_

_'A child who __**believes.**__' North stepped up to the Globe and looked at the glistening twinkles. 'And good __**or**__ bad, naughty __**or**__ nice, we__** protect **__them.'_

_'Ah, __**ah!**__' Jack could be heard groaning awkwardly. _

_'Tooth!' North looked sideways, uninterested- he'd seen her do this a hundred times before. 'Fingers out of mouth.'_

_'Oh! Sorry!' Tooth pulled herself away from the gorgeous pearly whites in front of her. 'They're beautiful.' she patted Jack on the shoulder while he recovered and licked his gums. _

_'Okay.' North pulled the topic of conversation back to it's important matter. 'No more wishy-washy! Pitch is out there doing who knows what!'_

_'You mean the- the __**Boogeyman**__?' Jack chuckled that such a man could be worrying the Guardians. _

_'__**Yes!**__' North confirmed, pointing at the huge model of the planet to his right. 'When Pitch threatens __**us**__, he threatens __**them**__ as well!'_

_'All the more reason to pick someone more qualified!' Jack turned around and shook his hand. _

_'__**Pick? **__You think __**we**__ pick?' North said, pointing to himself. 'No! You were __**chosen**__, like we were __**all**__ chosen, by Man In Moon.'_

_'What...?' Jack turned back, instantly on alert at the mention of his silent creator. _

_'Last night, Jack, he chose you.' Tooth said. _

_'Maybe.' Bunny added. _

_'Man In The Moon...' Jack questioned, looking physically taken aback. 'He __**talks**__ to you?' he looked at them in disbelief. _

_'You see, you cannot say no.' North said in a low tone. 'It is __**destiny.**__' _

_'Why... why wouldn't he tell me that himself...?' Jack gazed up at the soft Moon, not paying any attention to the others. 'Ah, sheesh...' Jack turned away from everyone- including the Man- and rubbed his hand on the back of his head. 'After three hundred years this is his answer? To spend __**eternity**__ like you guys cooped up in some, some hideout thinking of, of, of new ways to bribe kids?! No-o-o, no... That's __**not**__ for me!' he said firmly, pointing towards the floor and holding his ground, staring up at the Man. 'No offence.'_

_'How-how-__**how **__is that not offensive?' Bunny retorted angrily. 'You know what I think? I-I think we just dodged a bullet. I mean, what does this __**clown**__ know about bringing joy to children anyway?' he leant down on the ground and casually started scratching his ear with his foot. _

_Jack looked annoyed- a face they hadn't been able to see when it had happened for real. 'Uh, you ever hear of a snow day? I know it's no hard boiled egg, but kids__** like**__ what I do.'_

_'But none of them believe in ya, do they?' Bunny said viciously._ The real him physically cringed that he could say something so hurtful. _'You see, you're invisible mate. It's like you don't even exist.'_

_'Bunny! __**Enough!**__' Tooth scolded, but the rabbit didn't break his stare with Old Man Winter. _

_'No!' Jack said, lifting a finger. 'The kangaroo's right!'_

_'The- the __**what?**__' Bunny stuttered. 'What did you call me? I'm __**NOT**__ a kangaroo, mate!'_

_'Oh, and this whole time I thought you were.' Jack teased. 'If you're not a kangaroo, __**what are you?**__'_

_'I'm a __**bunny.**__' Bunny said threateningly, inching closer to Jack. 'The __**Easter**__ Bunny. People __**believe**__ in __**me.**__'_

_Jack's eyes shone with tears that he would never let fall, and they could see now he was fighting back pain._ He'd admitted it himself- he was alone. Bunny could barely watch he was so ashamed. He never wanted to insult Jack on his lack of believers ever again.

_'Jack, walk with me.' North said softly, breaking this feud up. _

The scene quickly flashed white, then disappeared into nothingness. That was the end of the second memory.

* * *

Ack, leaving notes at the end of chapters is becoming a habit...

This is quite a long chapter, and I hope that makes up for the fact that I was away for a couple of days, even though it is just a retell. I hope I've done these two scenes justice! The whole of the _repairing_ arc will be memories, in case you hadn't already realised, and so there will be a few retells of scenes in the movie, as I feel a lot of them were obviously important to Jack as well as his memories from his past life. There's going to be a lot of mushy fluff, then some serious tear-jerking, mess-with-your-emotions scenes, several of which I'm sure you can guess already ;) Buuuut, I have other things planned too. Things that we never got to see, things other than his sister. Besides, he had three hundred years of being Jack Frost, so I'm going to cover some of that time as it is obviously a massively significant chunk of his life.

Thank you for reviewing, I've had quite a few more recently and it's making me really happy! ^_^ I just spent a while editing and checked the dialogue about five times to make sure it's correct to the film- seriously, that took some effort (and a couple of hours). I actually did most of this from memory... I've written several retells from memory pretty accurately now, but obviously I went back and noticed quite a few mistakes :P I sit there watching the film and recite the lines with the characters. Seriously, I worry myself my fandom is so massive sometimes. But then, I scare other people more than myself. Feel free to laugh at me and call me sad.  
I got my dress done and had a really great time at the festival, but trust the British weather to rain all day and be so cold I could see my breath. In AUGUST. :( Ah well, it was still awesome. Sorry for keeping you waiting!

Love, your author, Emily! :D *drives dramatically away into the sunset, throwing candy canes at all her followers, favouriters and reviewers*


	37. Jackson

_'Wait up, wait up!' a little boy cried out, racing to keep up with some children in front of him. His hair was brown and his eyes, too, and he laughed as he ran through the dusty earth. It was a warm day, but humid._

'Is that…' Bunny trailed off, staring at the child.

'**Shh!**' Tooth ordered, not taking an eye off the memory.

_They all watched as the children ran off, then started to follow, knowing if they stayed here the scenery would start disappearing. They were in a row of houses, all made of wood and quite tattered, but hardy little things. Some smoke billowed out of one of the chimneys and they were surprised that a fire had been lit in this weather, but then realised it was probably for cooking. It was the late seventeenth or early eighteenth century- they could tell from the architecture, having lived through the period themselves. It was America, definitely, a mountainous area with great pine forests and snowy climbs. _But currently it was summer, and the heat was a shock to their senses after the coldness of Jack's other memories- he was the embodiment of ice, after all. The Guardians sped along, until a voice stopped them.

_'Jack?' a man called out, and they turned to the sound. There at the edge of a forest that loomed up above the houses stood a medium built man, his hands on his hips. He wore a thin and dirty green shirt and brown workers' trousers and boots. 'Jackson?' he called out once more into the trees, then started to walk into them. _

_'Don't call me Jackson!' a little voice echoed through the trees, but was then muffled by their cover. _

_'Alright, alright!' the man laughed. 'I won't! I promise, Jack! I saw you run in there, now come out!'_

_There was silence for a minute. 'No!' the boy called out again, and the man sighed. _

_'Look, I know you were running away from those kids, so come out! You know I won't do anything or tell anyone!' the man begged, and there was yet more silence. _

_'Keep it down, or you'll have told everyone by accident!' the boy sounded irritated. 'I'll come out if you promise not to tell ma and pa!'_

_'I promise!' the man shouted, then started walking down the forest path in search for Jackson. He listened carefully for any rustling, and flicked his head when a few birds fluttered their wings and flew away. _

_'You don't sound too sure!' the boy still didn't reveal himself. 'I can see you, by the way! Turn back and wait outside, where you were before, then maybe I'll come out!'_

_'You sure don't make negotiating easy!' the man chuckled as he walked back to where he came from and turned on his heels when he was there. 'Alright, I'm back! Will you come out now?'_

_There was silence for a few minutes, then leaves and twigs snapping could be heard from a little way away. The noise reverberated around the place, and a few gunshots could be heard in the distance. The boy was still not in sight. _

**_'Jack!'_**_ the man cried out, with a more anxious tone this time. __**'Jack you know they go hunting today! It's not safe! Please come out!'**__ he rubbed his dirty blonde hair in his fingers, filling his cheeks up with air and sighing. _

Everyone had been watching in the distance, and they hadn't noticed that the boy was now at the man's feet, just behind him. _He walked slowly up to the legs in front of him and clung to them as tightly as he could, and the man and the Guardians jumped. 'Oh __**Jack!**__ There we are!' he said softly, obviously relieved. _

_All the four could see was the boy's back- he had deep chestnut hair cut short, and he wore a little brown overcoat. He couldn't have been more than five years old. The man twisted himself around and pulled the boy up into his arms, who didn't refuse the safety of his hold. He hugged him tightly and held his little head to his shoulder, then broke the embrace by putting him back on the ground. He knelt down to the boy's height, and it was only now that the Guardians could see his face._ They simultaneously gasped, and they knew instantly that this was their Jack.

_His eyes were brown, shining warm orange in the sun, and his skin was tanned and smooth, dotted with a few freckles every so often. His fringe fell in little spiked clumps loosely over his forehead, and his face shone with youth._ He looked so similar, yet so different.

'That's him.' Bunny said quietly, almost in shock. 'That's really **him**.'

'He's so... **cute!**' Tooth shrugged her shoulders up. 'I could just eat him all up! And look- he even had perfect teeth when he was little!'

'This is... a little strange.' North's face scrunched as he pulled a thinking face.

Sandy clapped his hands excitedly and lay his head on them, obviously fond of the memory.

_'Jack!' the man said in concern and reached out a hand. 'Did __**they**__ do this? Is that why you ran away?'_

_Jack looked down in shame, hiding his tears, and it was only then that the Guardians noticed a big bruise on his left cheek, along with a graze where whatever had hit him had broken his skin, too. _

_'Jack.' the man angled his head upwards so that he could look in Jack's eyes. 'You can tell me the truth.'_

_Jack simply nodded in return, and a single tear dropped onto the ground. 'They don't like me all that much, Rodge.' _

_'Hey!' Rodge said, attracting Jack's attention and smiling fondly. 'It doesn't matter! They look stupid anyway. Now, let's get you home and I'm sure your mother will patch you up!'_

_'__**No!**__' Jack shook his head and anchored himself to the ground. 'You said you wouldn't tell ma and pa!'_

_'I won't, I won't!' Rodge chuckled. 'We'll say... Uh... That you fell over! Hit your cheek on a rock! Walked into a tree! Got attacked by an eagle! Taken forty years into the future, where you had to wrestle your older self to get back here!'_

_Jack laughed out loud, and was obviously cheered up by the silliness. He took Rodge's hand and they started to walk back through the houses, heading for the centre of town. _

_'Little Lily'll be waiting for you!' Rodge said with excitement. _

_'Yeah, well. We're not on such great terms at the moment.' Jack sighed in annoyance. _

_'Jack, she's two months old.' Rodge replied. 'How can you be on bad terms?'_

_'Well, for a start, she sucked my blanket.' Jack started, and Rodge laughed. 'Then she was sick on mother.'_

_'Oh yeah?' Rodge tried to stop himself from laughing at how serious the little boy was, but it was more difficult than it looked. _

_'__**Yeah!**__' Jack peered up with an angry expression. 'And she's stealing all the attention of mother and father! They never play with me anymore. I haven't played with either of them since she was born. Not __**once!**__' Jack sighed heavily, trudging through the dust, kicking up a cloud in front of him. _

_'Well, I don't think that's quite true.' Rodge pricked up an eyebrow. 'I saw you out with your pa just the other day! And besides, all babies are like that for a while- don't worry. You'll be mother and father's favourite again before you know it!'_

_'I __**will**__?!' Jack beamed with joy. 'Well, what I want for my birthday this year is some friends! I'm going to wish as hard as I can the night before.' _

_'That's right- it's your birthday in a few weeks, isn't it?' Rodge said and gripped Jack's hand a bit tighter. He knew that the little boy wasn't going to be getting anything special- the Frost family wasn't exactly gaining a lot of income recently, and what with a new baby to feed and provide for, it was much more difficult to find spare money. At least his wish was for something that couldn't be bought- but in the end, that could end up being more difficult. 'Well, I'm sure you'll get some friends soon. Who wouldn't want to be friends with Jackson Frost?'_

_'Hey!' Jack replied. 'I said not to call me that! But I think most people don't want to be friends with Jackson Frost.'_

_'Oh, so it's alright if you call yourself it?' Rodge grinned down at the boy who wandered along tipsily. _

_'__**Obviously.**__' Jack scoffed, but it just sounded funny in his young voice. 'I can call myself whatever I like. Hello, my name's Timmy! George! Sarah!'_

_'A girl's name?' Rodge leant down to do up a button on the boy's overcoat that had come undone. _

_'__**Yeah!**__' Jack bounced in happiness. 'Whatever I like!' _

_Rodge laughed heartily at the funny little boy he was escorting home, then realised they were nearly there. They'd just passed all the shops in the main square, all prettily decorated as usual. Some people were sat around on barrels and benches, chatting and relaxing. It was getting late, and most had finished work now. _

'We forgot again!' Bunny said out loud, hating having to break the mood of the lovely memory.

'Ack!' North sighed. 'It might be back there where we can't get it anymore!'

Sandy pulled out the knife from the bag, a look imprinted on his face that said "I remembered". He reassured them that it was it- it had only been by their feet when they were walking, and he had picked it up on the way. He didn't think he'd interrupt the memory while everyone was so engrossed in it. He promptly put it back in the dream sand bag and destroyed it in the same way as before, sighing as he continued to follow little Jack.

_They stopped when they reached a little house quite far outside of the main town. It was much like the others- made of wood planks, with a tiled roof and a sweet little porch where there were two wooden chairs. Rodge and Jack started to walk up the path to the house, as it was pushed back so that it was slightly away from the road. It had been a long walk for the small boy, and he looked slightly unsteady on his feet- they had crossed from one side of the town to the other, a trek that would have taken more than an hour if bits hadn't been skipped or forgotten in Jack's memory. They climbed the steps to the front door, which flung open wide. _

_A woman, dressed in white and brown with chocolate hair tied up in a messy bun stared wide eyed at the little Jack in front of her, not breaking her gaze to meet with Rodge's eyeline. _

'His mother?' North asked, directing his question towards Tooth.

'I presume.' she beamed. 'They look a lot alike, don't they?'

_It was then that the other three Guardians noticed her eyes- they were deep brown, much deeper than Jack's, but they had the same nose and few freckles. She looked worried, yet relieved. _

_'__**Oh Jack!**__' his mother cried out with emotion filling her voice and ran towards the little boy, pulling him into a tight embrace. '__**Never**__ run out like that again Jack! __**Please**__! Oh thank God you're safe... __**Darling Jack**__, we were worried sick...' she cradled his head in her hand and squeezed him tight, a few tears falling down her face. _

_'I found him in the woods on the west side of town, by my hut.' Rodge began to explain, and the woman pulled Jack up into her arms while he spoke. 'He tripped and hit his cheek, but it should be alright. He's a tough kid.'_

_'Thank you.' she smiled weakly. 'Thank you, Roger, always. I would give you something, but...' she hung her head and drifted off. _

_'No, no, you owe me nothing.' Roger shook his head and his hands, understanding how generous she could be. She would give up everything she had as gifts for people if she didn't have some shred of realisation that she would end up with nothing. Still, she was overly kind. 'Really, Emma, it was my pleasure. We had lots of fun, didn't we Jack?'_

_Jack nodded tiredly, and everything around them started to fuzz and blur. _

_'He'll need a rest after the walk, I'm sure- and it's getting late. I'll be home then!' Roger said_, but the Guardians heard his voice in muffled tones.

_'Thank you again, Roger!' Emma said as he left the porch, and she watched him walk away. _

_'Oh, say hello to Andrew for me! I hope he feels better!' Roger said_, but it was getting more difficult to understand the words with every second that passed.

'He's falling asleep.' Tooth laughed through her nose softly, and everything went black and quiet, then quickly changed to white.

_'Sleep well, sweetie.'_ a different man's deep voice was the last echo of the memory, and the Guardians smiled, realising who it was.

* * *

Ah, sorry this is a day late! I had to visit family :)

Still, I hope you enjoyed this extremely fluffy chapter- our first glimpse at a time none of us are aware of. AWW LITTLE JACKSON :3 How cute! This is where we start to delve deeper and deeper into Jack's past. It's going to be a bumpy ride, shall we say.

Remember that I respond to all of your reviews (guest or not) on the REVIEWS PAGE (chapter 30), so keep an eye out for your name! :D

Hopefully I'll be able to resist leaving notes for the next few chapters, but you'd probably have to give me a medal if I got through it.

Keep reading, reviewing, following and favouriting, and I'll love you forever ;)

Emily! xxx


	38. Believe

_'Okay, look.' Jamie said to the beige toy rabbit that sat upright on his bed in front of him. One of it's eyes had gone missing, and a button had been stitched on in it's place. 'You and I are obviously at what they call a crossroads, so here's what's gonna happen. If it __**wasn't**__ a dream and if you __**are**__ real, then you have to prove it- like, right now.'_

While Jamie spoke, the Guardians kept their ears on what he was saying and their eyes on objects in the room.

'This?' North asked quietly, and held a little toy space rocket up to Sandy, who tapped it and shook his head.

'This one?' Bunny asked this time, and he brought over a tiny soft toy of a Yeti- exactly like the ones at the Pole.

Sandy threw it between his hands and looked at it a few times, before he nodded and gave Bunny a thumbs up. He put it in his bag, and they all continued to watch the memory, which wasn't looking too great at the moment.

_'I've believed in you for a long time, okay? Like my whole life in fact. So you kind of owe me now.' Jamie's eyes welled up as he held the toy closer to his face and looked at it._ Bunny was taken aback. He hadn't known that this had happened, and he felt guilty for not being there to comfort the child. It's not like he had had any other believers to be visiting at the time. It was then that the Guardians- who were squashed up in the corner of the small room- noticed Jack watching from outside the window. His face was utterly miserable.

_'You don't have to do much- just a little sign, so I know.' Jamie stared at his rabbit even harder, slightly smiling. '__**Anything.**__ Anything at all.'_

_Jack looked upset, which wasn't surprising given the circumstances. Jamie continued to stare at his soft toy, but when nothing happened, his expression dropped along with his shoulders and he let go of it. It rolled off the side of the bed to the floor, where it lay still, facing up. _

_'I knew it.' Jamie whispered sadly. _Bunny knew that had been his last believer.

_Jack pushed open the window and hopped through it softly, making sure he didn't bring a gust of snow with him. Seeing all of this, he looked around for any ideas. He turned back to the window, and smiled as he thought of something. Even if Jamie couldn't see him, he could do things that Jamie could see. He quickly froze one window pane, and the child turned his head at the sound of ice crackling. His face lifted slightly in hope, and he gazed on as Jack drew on the frozen glass- it was an egg. An __**Easter**__ egg, and the Guardians knew that Jamie was looking straight through Jack- not that he paid any attention to it. He was used to it. _

_'Huh?' Jamie gasped and glanced down to his toy rabbit, and he jumped onto his feet. He could barely believe this. 'He's__** real.**__' his voice was low and husky because he was in such a state of shock. _

_Another window pane iced up, and this time Jack drew a rabbit. He concentrated hard and bowed his head, his hands cupped underneath the outline of the bunny, and the Guardians and Jamie watched in amazement. Jack brought the rabbit to life- the ice bunny stepped out of the window and hopped around the room, bounding in playful circles around Jamie. _

_'Woah!' he laughed, and so did Jack, who ducked to avoid it jumping into him. Jamie jumped to try to touch it, chasing it around, until he finally reached it. Upon his touch, it burst into a drift of pale snow, and Jamie looked on confused. _

_'Snow?' he said questioningly. Jack stood happily, smiling at the last believer. _

_A single snowflake floated down and landed on Jamie's nose, and he pulled a thinking face. 'Jack Frost.'_

The Guardians jumped back in surprise. This isn't how they'd imagined it- being Jack, they thought he would have written a message saying that Jack Frost was real just to be cocky about it. They'd never thought that it had been... by accident.

_Jack himself flicked his head in surprise. 'Did he just say...'_

_'Jack __**Frost?**__' Jamie said again, still facing away from the Guardian himself. _

_'He said it again.' Jack let out a heavy breath of cool air in disbelief. 'He said... __**you**__ said...'_

_Jamie turned around and his mouth dropped slightly open. __**'Jack Frost!'**__ he said quietly. _

_'That's right!' Jack jumped back away from the bed and threw up his arms around his head. 'But, but that's __**me**__! Jack Frost!' he looked down at his body and gestured to himself. 'That's __**my**__ name! You said my __**name**__!' Jack looked at Jamie with a smile cracking on his tired features, creased up eyes struggling to understand what was happening. Snow still fell around them in lulling drifts, gently swaying their way to the ground. _

_Jamie only stared on, and Jack had a realisation moment. He completely dropped his smile in half a second, instantly thoughtful and serious. 'Wait... Can you... Can you __**hear**__ me?' the Winter Spirit asked softly, and Jamie nodded gently in response, his mouth still wide open. _

_Jack could barely move. It looked like he was going to pass out. 'Can, can you... Can you __**see**__ me...?!'_

_Jamie nodded again, smiling this time. Jack laughed uncontrollably, barely able to let out words. '__**He sees me!**__ He... he__** sees **__me!' he promptly backflipped onto a table behind him, where he balanced on his toes. _

The Guardians were breathless. They knew Jack had never been seen in all of his second life, and they realised this was a defining moment for him. He had a believer, and that was all that mattered. Bunny was humbled, too- he'd never realised that Jack would do something like that for him.

_'You__** just**__ made it snow!' Jamie said excitedly. _

_'I know!' Jack replied, hands held in front of him. _

_'In __**my room**__!' Jamie continued, jumping on his bed a little. _

_'I __**know**__!' Jack said again, then hopped off the table ecstatically. _

_'You're __**real**__?!' Jamie asked. _

_'__**Yeah!**__ Who do you think brings you all the blizzards and, and the snow days?' Jack explained, barely on one breath. 'And you remember when you went flying on that sled the other day?!'_

_'That was __**you**__?!' Jamie interrupted. _

_'That was __**me**__!' Jack held his hands to his chest. _

_'Cool!' Jamie flung his arms up and bounced ecstatically. _

_'__**Right?!**__' Jack was joyous- someone really did love his work. _

_'But what about the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy, what, I mean-' Jamie started, looking unsure of himself. _

_'Real, real, __**real**__!' Jack didn't even let his believer finish. 'Every one of us is __**real**__!' he picked up the toy rabbit from the floor and pushed it back towards the new believer. _

_'I __**knew**__ it!' Jamie sounded elated. _

_'Jamie, who are you talking to?' a woman called out from another room, and the two new friends jumped a little. _

_'Um...' Jamie said, unsure of how to continue. Jack just smiled and pointed his head to the wall, and Jamie understood. 'Jack Frost?'_

_'Okay!' his mum chuckled, and Jamie's mouth dropped again. The two laughed together, and the look on Jack's face gave away everything. His eyes shone in the dim light, and he looked at Jamie with such relief it was difficult for the Guardians to watch._ Tooth nearly broke down crying.

Jack Frost had a believer, and that was all that mattered as everything lit up blinding white, and the sound of sleigh bells echoed through the blank world.

* * *

Nope, sorry, I'm leaving an A/N. Oh dear.

**DON'T FORGET- I respond to reviews on the REVIEWS PAGE, Chapter 30!**

Right! Really hope you're enjoying this arc so far, but things have been pretty light... they're going to get a bit darker soon. Eheheheeheeh... *sobs* Writing these scenes makes me notice things a lot more, and something really got to me in this scene- early in it, Jamie says 'I knew it.' when he drops his toy off the bed. Then, later on, when Jack says the Guardians are real, he also says 'I knew it!'. And for some reason, that really gets to me. Both times he was talking about the immortals being real, and I just. This film. I can't. And I noticed Jack's facial expressions way more- no don't i'll cry ;_; The emotion that's portrayed in his face is just- I couldn't describe it, it was that amazing. I really love these animators, man. Holy sh*t.

As soon as I get around to writing these, I forget what I was needing to write. Bummer. Ummm... I'll remember as soon as I close this. DRAT.

Eh, sorry this is late, it was my birthday yesterday (28th), so I was kinda busy :P I'm 15 now! WOW EMILY YOU'RE SO OLD AND WISE AND MATURE *yes I know random devoted reader, how lovely of you to point it out* what am I even going on about. I'm sorry. I'm getting some beautiful reviews, thank you, and gaining followers and favourites every day! AH! THIS IS AMAZING! I LOVE YOU ALL SO SO SO SO MUCH! :D

I was saying to a reviewer that if they think that there's been lots of feels so far. Well. Wow. What can I say. Prepare yourselves with some breathing exercises for some of the other memories, because they'll be pretty painful XD I'M SO SORRY! There are some you can guess, obviously- Jack's death, Lily- but there are lots more that I've made up... that are... um, worse than those. Oh dear. You'll have to wait and see... I'm such a tease! ;) Feel free to go and look at the reviews page- some of the longer answers are for interesting points brought up by reviewers, and you'll learn a little bit more about where this story's going if you look. Have a peek inside my mind!

SORRY LONG NOTE AGAIN WHY DO I KEEP DOING THIS?!

Emily xxx *extra cookies and fruit cake for you guys, for going along so long with the story and the notes!*


	39. Bombs and Little Girls

Strong gusts of cool wind broke over the Guardian's shoulders when the new memory appeared in front of them. _It was a city- dark and looming, but not huge. People rushed around, and they struggled to collect their senses in the chaos of everything- the air boomed and crashed overhead, explosions and gunfire spitting forth the horrible sounds of war. Men in uniforms shouted out instructions, whistles blew and people ran frantically about to try and shelter themselves from the falling debris and explosions that only seemed to get closer. A bomb hit a house only about two hundred metres away- a mushroom of fire blindingly lit up the whole street and a fierce heat surged from the house that fell to pieces onto the concrete below. Bricks and bits of housing collapsed and flew violently around the house, some bits even colliding with people and knocking them to the ground. People in tin helmets and wearing gas masks ran over to the downed citizens, pulling them up onto stretchers or having to carry them away quickly in their arms. Shining beams of light from huge torches lit up the sky, great big balloons floated in mid-air and planes roared over the bleak city. _

The Guardians could barely react. None of them had been expecting any of Jack's memories to be like this. They ducked for cover under the shelter of a house as quickly as they could, hiding from the falling ashes and bits of building that rained down upon the flaming street. They could hear a woman screaming at the top of her lungs, could hear her getting closer, only to see a young lady- probably a teenager- being carried on a stretcher in utter agony, one half of her left leg completely missing. They winced at the sight of her writhing around, her tatty clothing broken and charred, her skin scratched and burnt.

'Tooth, please tell me we can't be hit by bloody debris or bombs!' Bunny shouted over the sirens and commotion.

'I don't know!' Tooth shouted back, covering her ears when another explosion went off a couple of streets away. 'I don't think so! People can't touch us! But then again, we can touch objects! So I don't know! I've never been in a war zone in people's memories before!'

'We stay clear, just in case!' North boomed, slapping his ear.

'We're in London!' Tooth cried out again, feeling the ground shake underneath her feet. 'The blitz- World War Two!'

'What the hell was Jack doing _here_?!' Bunny screamed in panic. _More debris fell down seemingly from nowhere, and they saw that everyone was running towards a dimly lit stairway leading down- a bomb shelter. No... looking closer, there was a sign above the steps that read "_underground_". They were all going down to the underground stations and tracks. More gunshots and fired crackling could be heard, a set of bombs being dropped in quick succession only a few streets away. _

'Where is he?!' Tooth shouted, but she could barely even hear herself.

'Can't be far!' North squinted at the scene in front of them, the house that had been hit down the road quickly setting that row of buildings alight. They all wished they could do something, but knew there was nothing. Even when this had happened for real, they could do almost nothing- it was against their pledges to help people when it was other people attacking. If the human race was responsible for violence, even on children, there wasn't much the Guardians were really allowed to do. Not that that stopped them at least doing something.

Most of the time, though, there was too much saving to be done for them to cope with. Many thousands of children died in this war, and it haunted most of the immortals to the present day.

_By now, the street was nearly completely empty. One single old man was being led down the road by two men in the Home Guard, shouting angrily while he went. 'Bloody Huns!' he screamed to the sky, spitting white rage to the planes that zoomed and rocketed overhead. 'Piss off out of our London!'_

_The sirens for the air raid still raised people from their homes, children and adults alike leaving for shelter. It was going to be a long night. The wardens in the navy uniforms still blew their whistles, but their sound was almost drowned out in the din of the world around them. This didn't even look like a street. Every house was black, there were no streetlights, fear reigned and violence wreaked havoc over the city._ Pitch would love it here.

Sandy piped up, attracting their attention to him as he wandered carefully out into the broken road.

**'SANDY!'** Tooth shrieked. 'Where are you **going**?!'

Sandy motioned to the house on fire, walking towards it with a cautious smile on his face. A picture of the knife appeared above his head, and they understood. He put up a hand and told them to wait there- there was no point in them all going in case anything happened.

'Careful mate!' Bunny shouted, and Sandy saluted gently, hovering as quickly as he could towards the fire. When he reached as close as he could get without scalding himself in the blazing furnace that had become this set of houses, he stopped and focused his mind on finding the demon. It wasn't easy with all the noise, but at least there weren't people around anymore. He opened his eyes and stared where his instincts had told him the dagger was- a soft, throbbing feeling that drew him towards it like a heat detector. It was a pile of rubble- a big one at that- of bricks and road and wood, some pieces still smoking and on fire.

But as Sandy stepped towards it, somebody beat him to it. He knew who it was, but it had taken a few seconds for him to register.

_Jack Frost was... dark. His hair was stained and filled with soot and ash, grey and black. His pale skin was the same, and he wore a thin and simple black woollen jumper, obviously not having found his precious hoody at this period of history. He began digging, pulling up the debris rock by rock, brick by brick, as fast as he possibly could._ Seeing him, the other Guardians had joined Sandy and stood watching.

'What on _Earth_ is he doing?' North questioned and rubbed his arms. The heat was intense.

After a few minutes, deeper down into the rocks, they saw. _Carefully and softly, Jack lifted a limp young man from being crushed. He held him in his small lap for a minute, brushing back his black bangs and looking at him in concern and shame. He could've got here faster. The victim of the attack could only have been in his twenties, and he lay very still in Jack's arms- but the Guardians were too far away to tell whether he was... you know. His whole body was cut up and beaten, burns and bruises and gashes everywhere, and Jack just panted. He looked tired. _

_Quicker than they had been expecting, when nobody was looking, Jack pulled the man up and flew him just off the ground to a hidden place a few metres from the underground. He darted out into the street while the wardens faced the other direction and slowly lowered the man down to the hard ground. He still did not stir. _

A horrible sense of dread dropped into the Guardian's stomachs. _Jack promptly created a snowball in his hand and released it at a warden, before leaping away and back towards the burning house. The uniformed Home Guard looked around for a moment, but all anger was lost when he saw nobody but a still figure lying in the road. He could have sworn that man hadn't been there a minute ago. But that was no matter- he called over his other Guards and they quickly took the man down the stairs and into the underground. The street was now completely empty of people. _

_Jack exhaled heavily and assessed the scene in front of him- he was now next to the Guardians again, staring at the spreading fire. He rubbed his hair with his hand, then instantly winced and looked down at his palms- they were dark and black, but cut up and bleeding a little. If he hadn't been an immortal, he would've been in a right state by now._ The Guardians watched in annoyance that they couldn't help him. He was breaking the rules about helping people. Jack really was selfless.

'Where's his _bloody_ staff?' Bunny suddenly realised. _At that moment, the sirens cut out, and the streets were suddenly a lot quieter. _

_Seemingly in response to Bunny's question, Jack ran off into an alleyway briefly and came back with crook in hand. He pointed it firmly at the rising fire, not sure if he could deal with the heat for much longer. He threw ice at the flames as quickly as he could so that it wouldn't melt, and at the same time made sure that snow started to fall over the city. He was doing his best to help. Sadly, his ice was simply melting as soon as it hit the fire. _

Sandy took this as the chance to retrieve the knife from the rubble. He quickly turned to it and picked out exactly where it was in the stones. North came over to lift them, as Sandy's little hands would only struggle in lifting the large pieces of rock. Unsurely, he lifted one at a time until Sandy pointed excitedly- it was disguised as a shining black stone, the sides impossibly smooth. He made his little golden bag and let North place the demon inside of it, then shook it up until there was nothing left. He smiled happily.

'Wait, but surely this means... this is a _good_ memory?' Tooth frowned in confusion, not seeing how anything like this could be a joyous memory.

'Well, doesn't look _quite_ over yet.' North dusted off his meaty hands.

_More bombs fell close by, and enemy planes flew scarily close to the rooftops, their engines and wings roaring in the deep darkness of night. Jack forced his attack to be stronger, letting out a groan in exertion. Slowly, the flames started to die away, every one that was extinguished hissing loudly. There was no smoke because the ice now coated everything that had been burnt, and the road was silent except for the rage of war in the city further away. Jack sighed in tiredness and gently rubbed down his features. Snow started to fall softly from the plane littered sky, but the whole city really was almost completely in blackness. _

A small girl walked right through Tooth, and she gasped at the cold feeling it gave. _She wore a small hat and was only covered by a thin coat and tatty clothes. Her dirty blonde hair fell raggedly over her shoulders, obviously very badly home cut. _The Guardians stared at her as she stepped slowly towards the ice, surprised that such a young child would be out in this destruction with no adult- she must have been only six, seven perhaps.

_Jack heard her footsteps and turned to face her, looking worriedly as she walked ever closer. She looked fascinated. She walked straight past him, and he stayed where he was, intrigued at what she was going to do next. He knew he couldn't get her to safety, so it was best if he stayed with her in case anything did happen._

_The ice shined blue and bright in the light of the partially clouded moon, glittering in the blackness of everything else. The raggedy girl stepped up to the edges of it and stroked the pale, cold and magical phenomenon in front of her. She looked up at it climbing up the walls of the broken buildings, half collapsed and one of them with only a few rafters left. Something must have done this- some__**one**__- she thought. This wasn't natural ice. Cautiously, aware of her surroundings, she turned and looked around, staring blankly in the direction Jack was in. He was stood in the shadows, trying to cool himself down. _

_'You know you should probably get down into that shelter.' Jack said, his voice husky and rough. He'd been breathing in smoke. _

_The girl stopped still and continued to stare, unnervingly quiet and weird. She bunched her skirt up into her fists and pulled up her shoulders, feeling slightly cold and a little frightened. _

_'Well, your choice.' Jack sighed. 'But make being out here quick- the bombs haven't stopped dropping, in case you didn't notice. I have work to do.' _

_The girl's eyes widened and she stood her ground, but her head flicked sideways when she heard another explosion nearby. She shivered slightly in the sudden cold. _

_'Hey, it's okay!' Jack chuckled, stepping a little out of the shadows. _

_'I'm __**scared!**__' the little girl said tensely, but sucked in a shaky breath and pushed it down. She knew how to fight off being scared. She'd learnt to. _

_'I-I know, I know, but you're gonna be alright.' Jack said, and the Guardians watched as Jack flinched. His face crumpled and squished, and the street in London disappeared from their sight. Instead, they were met with flashes of a shaken up and blurry scene. A girl, with brown hair, her face young and not defined yet, looked up with fear in her eyes. She flashed out of sight, and the Moon came up, bright and huge, but something was blocking it, filtering it, magnifying it. Water...? The girls face came back, smiling this time. Her voice was loud and clear, even though her lips didn't move- 'Jack,__** I'm scared!**__' she faded again, and everything flickered angrily. Slowly, the street reappeared, and Jack's pained groaning could easily be heard._ The Guardians were at a loss. Everything was too jumbled for them to understand, but Tooth hazarded a guess that that had been... a flashback. That was Jack's sister, and she knew it, but she didn't verbalise her thoughts. She was too concerned for Jack at the moment.

_He rubbed his head aggressively with his hand, now on the floor and panting for breaths that didn't seem to come. He moaned as the flickering died out, still switching between the weird thing that he had just seen and the present. The girl- she was next to him, unsure of what to do. _

_'P-__**please**__!' she whined, leaning down to his height. Her voice was timid and broken, as if she hadn't spoken for a long time. 'What's wrong?' she asked worriedly. _

_Jack's awareness fully came back to him, and he fumbled for his staff by his side. Slowly, he sat up and brought his breathing back to normal, the pulsing in his head coming to a standstill. _

_'Are you alright?' the girl said shyly. She fingered a lock of hair that ran down her left shoulder. _

_Jack just sighed and shook his head, feeling slightly nauseous and delusional. _

_'__**Hello?**__' she asked again. _

'No...' Bunny said. 'No, no, no! Jack had... a, a believer...?'

_Jack shivered and wondered why that girl kept talking. He wondered why she was looking at him. He quickly snapped his head to look behind him, but there was nobody there. He shook his head and sighed, obviously delusional from whatever he had just seen. _

_'Excuse me, sir, but are you alright?' she choked on her words and stared into Jack's eyes with a worried confusion. _

_'Wait...' Jack let out a pained breath. 'You're not... talking to __**me**__? No, you're __**not**__ talking to me!' he laughed. _

_'Of course I'm talking to __**you**__!' she huffed, pushing back a few strands of hair that blocked her sight. _

_'Wha... __**what?**__' Jack inched away from her, further into the shadows. _

**_'Are- you- all- right?'_**_ she said slowly and firmly. _

_'I'm... I'm fine.' Jack swallowed hard. 'You... you can __**see me**__?'_

_'Of course I can see you!' the girl's high voice sounded tinged with humour. _

_'But-but nobody's ever seen me... I'm invisible.' Jack huffed out a few breaths as she stepped closer. 'How can you... how are you... __**what**__?' he stared at her in amazement, barely breathing. _

_'You're nuts.' she sighed. 'Are you...' she suddenly backed away. 'Are you __**German**__?!'_

_'__**What?!**__' Jack gasped. '__**No**__! American! I'm American!'_

_'Oh.' she came a little closer again, arms crossed. 'Good. Come on, let's get out-' her voice broke slightly, and she stopped talking altogether. 'I... don't like... talking.' she said softly. _

_'That's, that's okay.' Jack started to push himself off the ground. He was in utter shock._ So were the Guardians.

_Jack followed the young girl cautiously as they headed off down the road. She stopped in the middle of the empty and broken street and turned back to Jack, pulling an amazed expression. 'You did... did __**that**__, didn't you?' she pointed forcefully towards the ice that layered the houses. _

_'Uhh, yeah, yeah I __**did**__.' Jack looked lost for words or movement or anything he had to think about. _

_'You talk funny.' the child giggled and turned to start walking again. _

_A loud bomb went off nearby, and the drone of nearby planes rattled windows and the ground itself. Another explosion tore closer only seconds after, and Jack's eyes widened with realisation. They were being bombarded- one explosive after another, and the line started at the end of the street they were walking away from. The sound of the plane got closer and closer, drumming in everyone's ears and almost deafening them._ There was barely enough time to react, and luckily the Guardians had slipped ahead and sideways from Jack and the girl. They were safe- almost. Jack and the child, however, were not.

**_'GET DOWN!'_**_ he screamed at the top of his lungs over the noise, but his first believer was frozen in fright. Ironic. _

_Jack started to run towards her, the wind pushing him along quickly to her side, where he grabbed her violently. He pulled her small and thin body into his own, grasping her head in one hand and the middle section of her back with the other, before taking off into the air._ The Guardians knew they had to get away, follow him- he'd obviously survived it. They went on ahead, able to be more agile in their movements because they didn't have to carry a small person. _Jack fell behind, and an explosion crashed through and shattered all the ice he had created. That was it- he'd made a mistake. Everything had been hidden- it was blackout, and no lights were on anywhere. From above, there was no sign of a city. But Jack's ice had shone in the covered moonlight, and it must have been visible. He had drawn them here. He had made them attack. _

_All too soon, the plane was catching up. It dropped it's fifth and final bomb perhaps a hundred feet behind Jack and three hundred behind the Guardians. _

**'JACK!'** North called out behind him, but there was nothing they could do.

_Jack tried to fly away with her, but the shockwave from the explosion made him lose his control of the wind. Knowing he couldn't do anything, he wrapped himself around her as tightly as he could, holding her head to his chest and using his body as a shield. His staff was clasped in the crease of his elbow, and suddenly the fire hit them. Terrible heat threw itself in a pounding attack at the falling two, them twisting and turning in the air. The girl screamed into Jack's chest, and he shut his eyes. _

'Oh my goodness...' Tooth gasped as she looked back, but everything went orange and white because of Jack's closed eyelids.

_There was only ringing now- deafening ringing in all of their ears, but they could hear muffled breathing and several thuds as Jack took the impact of hitting the ground. Slowly, everything came to a standstill, but Jack didn't move. He still held the girl like she was the most precious thing he'd ever come across, her sobbing racking through his heated chest._ Everything around the Guardians was hot. _Very_ hot. It was what Jack remembered feeling like.

_Gradually, sound returned to the world. Jack dared to open his eyes just a crack, despite the searing pain that swelled through his body, and it was then he noticed the girl was no longer in his arms or even lying next to him. She was above him, looking down on him, shouting something. She looked alright, and Jack had to be thankful for that. Still, his hearing was muffled and ringing and he was far from alright. She panicked around him, and he was only half aware of it in his dazed state. The heat of the fire was close, but nobody was coming for them. Everyone was sheltering. _

The Guardians were just immobile. They could only see and hear as much as Jack remembered, and they couldn't help him either. It wasn't the impact that had hurt him. It was the explosion- the fire and the heat against his cold body. He'd never been hurt like this from the opposite of his nature- so this was not pleasant.

_The girl shifted around above him, and her high pitched and panic stricken voice came into the focus of his hearing, amongst the deafening ringing. _

_'...do I __**do**__? I... You... __**Help**__! Need... someone... doctor... you... __**god**__... __**Please!**__ Wake... __**wake up**__!' she squealed, all too loudly for his liking. _

_Jack softly smirked at her to dispel her worries, and forced himself to sit up. His back stung and smarted, and he hissed at the pain that jarred through his body, but right now he needed to make sure she wasn't hurt and that she was safe. _

_'Areyou... alright?' Jack's words slurred off his tongue, and he frowned at his weird sounding voice. _

_'Yes, but it's... It's __**you**__...' she was almost hyperventilating. 'Your __**back**__!'_

_'I'll be o-okay!' Jack chuckled, but winced as it shook his body. 'I'm tougher than I look.'_

_'We need to go. The-the __**coppers**__ and the- the __**men**__...' her eyesight shifted around the scene, and Jack understood her underlying panic. He rose slowly up to his feet, stumbling a little but keeping his balance, even when his head swum and swayed everything._ The Guardians themselves felt a little woozy as the street tipped unnervingly sideways. Jack must have taken a bad hit for him to be like this- he'd fallen from the sky and hit a dumpster, and he'd got up perfectly fine from that. _He walked slowly away, leaning on his staff heavily_, and that was when the Guardians saw his back.

_Jack's bare back was showing completely through his thin jumper, and his skin was raw and pink. Shards of glass dug into his flesh and small trickles of blood fell from each puncture wound._ They gasped. It wasn't as bad as what was wrong with him in the real world now, though.

_The girl held his hand and dragged him along to a side alley, where they walked for several minutes before stopping. They sat in a wide doorway, Jack slumping slightly against the wall. He felt the warmth of something wet slip past his eye, then realised with a sulking sigh that it was blood. He had hit his head, or maybe it was glass or brick. _

_'Your... __**your back**__!' the girl tried to get a look at it, but Jack twisted away so she wouldn't see. _

_'I'm fine.' he said firmly to keep her calm. 'I don't hurt easily.' the ringing continued endlessly. _

_'Okay, okay...' she took a deep breath. 'I'm Megan.'_

_'Good to meet you, Megan, I'm Jack. Jack Frost.' Jack stuck out a hand goofily, and she shook it gently. He held back a relieved shudder- one of the first times he'd ever made contact with someone. Coldness pricked up inside him, and he made sure to keep the snow falling onto the broken city. _

_'Jack Frost.' she pondered the name. 'Mam used to tell stories about you! Yeah! You're __**real**__?'_

_'Aren't I in front of you?' he smirked playfully and cocked his head to the side. _

_'Wow.' she looked off at the black wall that rose up across from them. It was hard to see where the brick ended and the sky started. Explosions still echoed through the city, along with the crackling fires and collapsing houses only a walk away from them, but it was quieter here. _

_'Are you__** sure**__ you're not hurt?' Jack checked again, certain she must have hit something. _

_'I knocked my knee, but it's __**alright**__, Jack. It'll just be a bruise.' Megan pulled her shoulders up tight around her head to shield herself from the sudden cold. _

_'Sorry...' Jack looked down. 'I can't really help... __**that**__.'_

_'That's okay.' she hummed. 'I like cold weather. It's __**amazing**__, that you can do that.'_

The Guardians watched with fondness. _They still weren't safe, but Jack got the feeling that Megan wasn't the type to hide in a shelter. He suddenly realised-_

_'Megan, where's your family?' Jack asked in concern. _

_'They... they'll be at home.' she sighed. 'They never go underground. Mother died three years ago, so it's just me and my four brothers and two sisters and dad. But he's... he's not nice to us anymore. Not since ma died. I look after the younger ones sometimes, but my older brothers Tom and George- well. Tom helps out lots, but he's a bit distant. He got sent out to fight, see... He doesn't talk much anymore. And George- he's just like dad. Sits around and drinks and... well. You get the idea.' she hid her face from him. _

_'I'm... I'm sorry, Megan.' Jack wasn't sure what to say. He wasn't good at talking to people. 'But, but you should get back to them. They'll be worried with all the bombings- where do you live?'_

_The girl scratched her head and pointed at a doorway across the alleyway. 'I... don't talk much.' she repeated and blushed. _

_'Not the impression I got.' Jack giggled, and she pulled her hair out of her thin and worn coat. _

_'Mm. I hadn't said a word for __**two months**__ until today. You __**ruined**__ my record.'_

_'Sorry?' Jack looked up at her, as she'd now stood up. _

_'That's okay.' she grinned and paused. 'You were out for a few minutes you know.'_

_'I __**was**__?' Jack squinted in the darkness. She didn't answer. _

_'I have to go.' Megan said simply. It must have been the early hours of the morning by now. _

_'Yeah, of course.' Jack stood slowly to his feet, using his staff for support and feeling the wind tickle his ears to try and soothe his aches. _

_'Jack, __**thank you.**__' Megan pulled a serious face, then swung in and hugged his leg. She didn't want to touch his back and hurt him. _

_Jack was thrown- for a few seconds he couldn't move, just like when Jamie had done the same. He softly patted her back and ruffled her hair, and smiled down at her beaming face. 'Thank __**you**__.' he said quietly. _The Guardians withheld gasps of joy.

_'Oh, and Jack?' she said as she pulled away. 'Will you come back tomorrow? And the next day?'_

_'Yeah!' Jack chuckled in the dead of night, hearing the "_all clear_" siren ringing around the huge city. __**'I promise.'**_

_'Good!' she walked to her doorstep and hovered there. 'Fix your back!' she called out, and he waved at her. _

_'Goodnight!' Jack said tiredly, looking back one more time. He had a believer. A real believer. Someone who really saw him. He held back tears._

_'Goodnight!' she called back, and then her blonde locks disappeared into the dark doorway._

* * *

Aha! Weren't expecting that, were you?

Well, we have officially introduced Megan, who will be in 3 memories. Sorry this is so long- but yes! I told you things were about to get interesting! SHOCK, HORROR- Jack had a believer before Jamie! :O I hope you like her. She'll be shier in the next chapters- I am writing these three in the correct order, as I think it would be too confusing if I didn't. Of course I'd make her British- I _am_ British *evil laughter* No, I wanted to break the thing of Brits being bad guys- well, English people. Pitch is English. Nobody else is English T-T It makes me sad, America! We're nice people!

Buhhh, yeah, I like Megan. And I wanted her to be in a different time, so here you have a little bit of history. I don't know how much you're taught about the Blitz and the war in Britain wherever you live, but we're taught it a lot here. A lot. It's interesting, though :)

Okay, I'll shut up! The next ones will be... feelsy. I'm so sorry. So so sorry.

Emily! xxx :D *throws dream sand at your face, and mine because it is 2:15 am!*


	40. The Staff

Unfortunately for the Guardians, the white light only faded slightly to a duller white light, making them wonder if they had actually changed memories.

'Where is this...?' North squinted in the brilliant light all around them.

'I think... It's one of the poles.' Tooth held a hand up to her forehead as a sun shade- not that there was any sun.

'_South._' North said bitterly, grinding his teeth.

_It was definitely cold enough- cliffs of ice layered up on the landscape all around them, with icicles the size of people hanging off their ledges. Snow fell in swift gusts, changing directions all the time, and the sky was so thick with clouds it looked like a ceiling that could fall through any second. They were low and close, and although the rise and fall of the land stretched out for many miles all around them, the space between the ground and the clouds felt small and contained. _

On one thin cliff edge, the Guardians spotted Jack. _He was holding his golden Tooth Box, gripping it so tightly in his white knuckled right fist it looked like it could break in two at any given moment._ They walked closer to get a better view, and Sandy tried to sense for the demon, but he couldn't feel anything. He'd try again in a while. _Jack lifted the box above his head and stood as if he was about to throw it off the edge. _He threatened a few times, and Tooth watched in almost anger. She knew he wouldn't dare. _Jack sighed and groaned, then stamped his foot angrily and put looked thoughtfully at the Tooth Box. _

_'I thought this might happen.' Pitch's voice was unexpected, and made hatred well in the pits of the Guardians' stomachs. Jack's face crumpled as he controlled his own anger, huffing and clenching his fists. 'They never really believed in you. I was just trying to show you that. But __**I understand**__.'_

_Jack promptly turned and fired ice at his enemy as hard as he could. __**'YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND ANYTHING!**__' he screamed into the bleakness as his attack was diverted. _

_'__**NO?! I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE TO BE CAST OUT?!**__' Pitch said, throwing his own sand at Jack. _

_'__**AHHH!**__' Jack shouted vowels loudly at the exertion of his attacks. _

_'To __**not**__ be __**believed**__ in?!' Pitch lowered his voice a little as the last attacks were thrown, and shards of ice swirled around them like thick and blinding mist. Pitch sounded almost... sad. 'To __**long**__ for... a __**family**__!' _

_Jack looked around for Pitch, in defence mode, for him to appear right behind him. Surprisingly, he didn't try to attack. Neither of them did, and Jack just lowered his guard, observing his enemy with something close to compassion._ He was feeling sympathy, and the Guardians knew it as soon as they saw him- he was connecting with the Boogeyman. _The drifts of ice flew around them, slowly settling down to the ground again. _

_'All those years in the shadows I thought "_no one else knows what this feels like_".' Pitch said tiredly. 'But now I see I was wrong.' he gestured towards the Winter Sprite. _

_Jack was confused- what was Pitch trying to do? They locked their gazes on each other, and he completely lowered his staff. _

_'We don't __**have**__ to be alone, Jack.' Pitch said seriously. Jack lowered his head and furrowed his eyebrows in thought as the Boogeyman circled him. '__**I **__believe in you- and I __**know**__ children will__** too**__.'_

_'In __**me**__?' Jack's eyes widened at the thought of having believers. _

_'__**Yes!**__' Pitch chuckled a little, and placed his spindly hand on Jack's back. _

Then the Guardians realised- Jack was being understood by someone. He'd been alone all that time, and just as he thought he'd found friends, they had turned him away. Pitch was the only friendship he was being offered, and he would get believers, too. Why would anyone turn him down? They realised they couldn't be angry at Jack for considering the offer, especially with them rejecting him barely hours before.

_'Look at what we can __**do**__!' the ice clouds had settled, and Pitch gestured towards a huge sculpture they had made in the midst of fighting. It spiked out everywhere, thousands of grains of nightmare sand trapped inside ice. 'What goes together better than __**cold**__ and__** dark**__?' he waved his hands in front of his face, imagining things, and the Guardians could easily spot the power lust in his expression. Jack stared at their broken faces in the smooth ice. _

_'We can make them __**believe**__! We'll give them a world where everything... __**EVERYTHING**__ is-'_

_'Pitch Black?' Jack pointed his staff calmly at the Boogeyman. _

_'And Jack Frost, too.' Pitch replied, aiming a finger at him. 'They'll believe in both of us.'_

_'No, they'll __**fear**__ both of us, and that's __**not**__ what I want.' Jack turned around and started to walk away. 'Now for the __**last**__ time,__** leave me alone**__!' _

_Pitch looked surprised, to say the least. He wasn't expecting Jack to say no. Then his face hardened again- he had made himself look weak and vulnerable, and had opened up to the young Spirit, only to be turned down. He was done trying to make deals. _

_'__**Very well.**__ You want to be left alone?' Pitch asked menacingly. '__**Done!**__ But first...' he paused, and Jack's eyes widened at the sound of a weak little chirp from behind him. _

_'__**Baby Tooth!**__' Jack cried out and turned back, to be greeted by the sight of Pitch holding her in his fist. She was struggling, and could barely move._ Tooth herself covered her mouth with her hands.

_'The __**staff**__, Jack!' Pitch shouted. 'You have a bad habit of interfering.'_

'No, Jack, you _wouldn't_!' Tooth called out, even though she knew he couldn't hear her.

_'Now hand it over, and I'll let her go.' Pitch offered simply, and Jack pulled an agitated expression. _

_Baby Tooth shook her head as much as she could, trying to tell Jack no. He wrestled with ideas in his head of how to get out of the situation. _

_He thought about it for a long minute, even threatening Pitch with his crook, before flipping his precious and constant companion around and hanging his head as he offered the end to his enemy. Pitch took it quickly to make sure he didn't try anything, and moved back a little, still holding the little fairy. _

'Oh Jack...' Tooth gasped behind her hands.

_'Alright, now let her go.' Jack said firmly, holding out his hand to take her. _

_Pitch looked thoughtful for a minute. '__**No**__.' he shook his head, and Jack stood back, stunned. 'You said you wanted to be alone, so __**BE**__ alone!' _

_Baby Tooth wasn't happy. She looked up at her captor angrily and dug her thin beak into his hand. Pitch instantly flinched and cried out in vexed tones, then lifted his arm and flung her to the nearest vertical ice cliff. _

_'__**No!**_' Jack and Tooth cried out at the same time, but everything happened too quickly. _He reached out a hand as if that would stop her from falling, but just as he did a loud snap echoed from behind. _

The landscape suddenly went blurred, and some places were just black smudges. As the Guardians could barely see, they had to focus hard. _They saw that in Pitch's hands, Jack's staff lay broken in two. Jack cried out in immense pain and his fingers twitched and tensed as he tried to reach for his chest, where he was obviously in agony. _

The Guardians were in shock. They had never known that this had happened, let alone that he had been in pain. Not even Baby Tooth had mentioned it to Tooth.

_Only a second later, they watched as Pitch held his hands by his side and built up a dark clump of nightmare sand, then hurled it at Jack. It hit him square in the chest, right where he had been hurting, and they watched in horror as he was projected backwards. He hit the ice cliff that Baby Tooth had collided with too, his head slamming against the solid surface, and very quickly nearly everything went black. They saw- in the little light they had left- Jack fall down into a crack in the ice limply, smashing into the walls until he touched solid ground. Everything was black then, and deathly quiet, and they realised that Jack had been knocked out. The last thing that could be heard was a gentle laugh, then the hollow noise of wood hitting wood as Pitch threw down his broken staff to lie next to him._ The Guardians didn't know how to react. That was something they really should have known about, but everything started going white, and it was only when it was too late that they realised they hadn't found the knife.


	41. Summoning Darkness

_(This isn't a memory, just to say) :)_

* * *

Jamie lay in his small bed, staring up at the ceiling. His body physically jerked and his heart pounded in his ears every time he heard a noise- a door shutting, floorboards creaking, even the wind. He was scared. _Very_ scared.

But that was what he wanted- every time a new, scarier thought came into his head like they do when you're afraid, he welcomed it and made himself believe it would come true. He imagined horrible things, violent things, the people he loved... and as much as he hated it, he knew he had to do it. For Jack.

Jamie had watched one eighteen rated horror movie, and two fifteens, which made him feel kinda cool, but they were utterly terrifying for a boy of his age. His mum had been working a late shift, so he managed to dig out some of her old movies- he'd never imagined her liking horror. Maybe she just bought a few on a whim. He'd turned out all the lights, put Sophie to bed, and sat down on his own in the living room to watch them. Every scream made his skin crawl and what he saw only made his fears of zombie apocalypses and murderers become truer and wilder in his mind. When they had finished, he checked on Sophie and found her sleeping soundly- fairy wings still attached- then crept silently off to his own room. He made sure not to shut his curtains or his window, just to scare himself more.

He'd been lying, awake, for a couple of hours now, and he had almost fallen out of the bed when his mum had come home. She was sleeping now, so he was the last one left awake. Slowly but surely, he found it harder and harder to resist the heavy feeling on his eyes. As he drifted into sleep, he made sure his final waking thoughts were terrifying. It was the last thing he could do to ensure a nightmare.

Pitch felt the fear- strong, crushing fear. Nobody in the world had felt this kind of fear for months. But more importantly- it wasn't just fear, it was fear of him. The Boogeyman. Somebody believed in him, _right now_, and they were shaking in their bed they were so afraid. Pitch laughed, letting that warm and fiery sensation of raw fear seep into every inch of his body, enjoying it's heat that he had longed for so tirelessly. But who was it...? He _had_ to know. He had to go and see, and make them more afraid. This was his first nightmare in months- apart from those of pathetic Frost- and he was going to be there to personally conduct it.

In the dead of night, Jamie tossed and turned in his fitful sleep. The nightmares had flowed- just like he wanted- but it was this next bit that had to go right. Pitch manifested from the shadows in the corner of the boy's room, staring in eager anticipation at the child he knew and hated all too well.

'Ohh, my _dear Jamie_.' Pitch sneered. 'Miss Jack? _Too bad_. I really must thank you for this- I haven't had a believer since Easter. And here you are- the one who helped to crush me- the first to be afraid of me again. It's almost too good to be true.' Pitch walked closer, stepping up to the bed with his hands clasped in excitement.

Jamie's face scrunched, and he let out a muffled cry. A few garbled words escaped his lips and his eyebrows furrowed. Pitch looked down on him and readied his nightmare sand, but as he took his last step to stand next to the sleeping child, he felt something lower under his foot.

Instantly, a loud alarm clock went off, and all the lights switched on- there were no shadows close to Pitch, and he attempted to shield himself from the glare. Jamie quickly awoke with a jump, looking all around, but smiled as he saw the Boogeyman. He turned off his alarm clock and the room was plunged into a tense silence. Pitch couldn't get out- not quickly, and not without the boy noticing anyway.

'And you know what they say about that- if it sounds too good to be true... _it probably is_.' Jamie smirked.

Pitch just snarled and huffed.

'I knew you would come.' Jamie said quietly, now sat up and out of his bed covers.

**'What are you ****_doing_****?!'** Pitch shouted with a hiss in his voice. He couldn't stand the light.

'Getting you to talk.' Jamie said firmly, a determined expression set like concrete onto his face.

'About _what?!_' Pitch squirmed in the light, but he couldn't for the life of him find a shadow big enough to shelter or hide in.

'You _know_ what.' Jamie almost whispered. He didn't want his mum to hear.

**'Oh.'** Pitch smiled. 'You know about_ that_.' he started to laugh sadistically, pleased that Jack's believer and "protector" knew he was hurt. 'Poor, _poor_ Jack._ Dying_ in pain, all alone, and _afraid._'

Jamie was thrown- surely the Guardians had done _something_? He knew Jack was badly hurt, and deep down he had known that he was dying the moment he laid eyes on his battered body. But hearing it out loud, said by someone else, was another matter entirely. He didn't want to hear it.

'Jack's going to die, Jamie.' Pitch was trying to worm his way out of the situation. 'There's nothing anyone can do. Not anymore. Not even the Guardians can save him now.'

_'No!'_ Jamie retorted in anger. He wouldn't let Pitch call the shots. 'No, all I want to know is where he is!'

_'Where?'_ Pitch replied. 'Planning a visit, are we? It's probably for the best. It means you can say goodbye.'

_'Where is he.'_ Jamie said behind clenched teeth, trying as hard as he could to resist his urge to jump on the evil man in front of him.

'Where do you _think_?' Pitch smiled. 'Under careful guard of his precious Guardians- the Pole, of course.'

_'Pole?'_ Jamie asked. 'Like, the _North_ Pole?'

'The very same.' Pitch turned and started to pace the room, if only to unnerve his lurer. He didn't like being the one not in control of a situation. 'Not that it matters. You have no way of getting there, and even if you did, it's too late. That broken and weak little wisp of a boy is no longer Jack Frost- he left a while ago. Don't expect to get him back.'

_'What did you do to him?!'_ Jamie suddenly felt anger pang in the depths of his soul, and he needed to know more.

'You said you only wanted to know_ one_ thing.' Pitch held his hands behind his back. 'I think that's _two_. But I'm willing to tell- I'm sure you'll regret asking once I've told you.'

'Just get on with it.' Jamie could barely stand to look at the Boogeyman's horrible face any longer.

'Well, **first**, I gave him lots of nightmares. Fuelled his fears. I watched every memory he had and destroyed them- and only left the bad ones behind.' Pitch let a small smile spread across his face. 'Then I _beat_ him. I showed no mercy- the same as he did to me. I thought he'd die then, but being the stubborn little nuisance that he is, he didn't. So after your little visit to the Warren, I stabbed him. And I made sure that this time he _screamed_.'

Jamie couldn't hold his fierce expression anymore- he'd had no idea about this. It sounded... _terrible_. And it was partly his fault. His eyes widened and he tried to blink away the image of Jack lying motionless in the grass, but it wouldn't go.

'The _damned Guardians_ still have my knife- I had to get away, and it slipped out of my robe on the way. It wasn't until later I realised it was gone. You know that's my most treasured possession? If they even **touch** it-' Pitch stopped his anger from flooding him. 'After that, he started to forget who he was, what he was.' Pitch continued, relishing the newfound fear that practically dripped off the boy in front of him. 'He forgot _you_, Jamie. If he saw you now, he wouldn't even recognise you.'

'No, _no..._' Jamie shook his head and tried to forget everything he was being told.

**'Yes.'** Pitch fell serious once more. 'Then he fell back asleep, and he won't wake up from it this time.'

**_'You liar!'_** Jamie briefly shouted, but instantly regretted it.

_'Jamie?'_ his mum called out from down the hall. 'Jamie?'

He didn't know how to respond. He found it difficult to think of anything to say about anything in that horrible moment of new knowledge. A light turned on in the hallway, and his mum's footsteps creaked closer and closer. Pitch still had nowhere to run.

'Jamie are you al-' his mum started and rubbed her eye when she opened the door. _'Why are all these lights on?!'_ she said angrily.

_'I had a bad dream.'_ Jamie said bitterly through clenched teeth and continued to stare at Pitch. 'That a friend died, but it was _only_ a **dream**. A **nightmare**.'

Pitch smiled at the attitude and bravery this child showed. It really was worth applauding he could put up a fight against the truth for so long.

'Oh honey.' Jamie's mum softened at the news. 'Wanna talk about it?'

'No, I just want it to _go away_, back where it came from.' Jamie said angrily again. 'Where it belongs- in a hole somewhere. Then I want to go back to sleep and pretend it never happened.'

'That's the key word, isn't it?' Pitch stifled a laugh. _'Pretend.'_

'Jamie, what are you looking at?' his mum turned to glance in the direction her son was staring daggers at so intensely. It was just his plain room.

'Nothing, just thought I saw something, but it was **nothing**.' Jamie smiled up at his mum warmly. 'Not worth thinking about.'

'Oh, I'm _hurt_.' Pitch said sarcastically over the top of the woman's comforting words. 'You should watch your tongue.'

'You're alright, then?' she pulled out of the hug and looked down on her tired looking son.

'Yeah, go back to sleep.' Jamie grinned softly.

'Alright.' she stroked his hair and kissed him on the head. 'Love you.'

'Love you too.' Jamie said quietly, but Pitch caught it.

Jamie's mum reached for the light switches, and turned them off one by one. Jamie screamed internally- he hadn't finished questioning, but he knew Pitch would get away now. At least he had some information.

'See you at the funeral, Jamie.' Pitch said as he disappeared back into the shadows and Jamie's mother left the room.

'See you at _yours_,' Jamie spat the words silently as he turned onto his side under his covers, 'Pitch.'

* * *

Ack, I'm so sorry this is late TT^TT  
I think this fic is going to become an every other day update, as school is starting again and I'll have less time to write, and we are half a chapter off being caught up to where I'm writing right now, so you're pretty much getting live updates XD I am sorry for this, but I think it would be too much stress for one a day. How are you all enjoying the _repairing arc_ so far? I really like making up stuff about Jack's past :3 I think I've made it a little bit more painful than most, though :( Sorry about that- the worst is yet to come... Plenty more memories to go!  
But JAMIE! :D See, he's smarter than Bunny realised ;) He clocked on to the lies- good on him! But what part will he play next? Eeehee, all in good time my dears. Sassy little boy in this chapter, though!

Lotsa love from your author, Emily xxx Keep reading, reviewing, following and favouriting! :)


	42. Saturday Sunset

'What do we do now?!' Bunny said in a blind panic, racing around the nothingness that hadn't settled into a memory yet.

'We have to stay calm, alright?' Tooth ordered. None of them could see each other, so Sandy couldn't tell them the important information.

'We can go back, right?' North's voice wavered slightly.

'No, you know we can't.' Tooth said. 'We just have to hope the damage of one memory won't be enough for Pitch to still hold much power.'

The memory finally set in, the view in front of them that of a beautiful sunset._ It shone in incredible reds, pinks, yellows and oranges, vibrant and lurid._ The Guardians all stopped worrying for a few seconds as they just stared at what was in front of them. _The sun was falling below red canyons that ducked and dived and sloped jaggedly everywhere, much like the ice cliffs in Antarctica._ They wondered why Jack would want to come here, especially considering it was bordering on hot- far from his ideal climate.

_They spotted him, sat on the edge of one of the crimson and dusty walls of stone and earth, swinging his legs back and forth off the edge. He leant against his hands which propped him up behind his back, his staff lying next to him. His hair had some red dust in it, and they knew that he had been lying down here. _

Sandy, remembering the conversation they had all been having only a minute before, attracted the three others' attention.

'What is it?' North asked.

Sandy made some pictures above his head, but this was difficult to explain.

'Slower, mate!' Bunny requested, and Sandy sighed. He made the pictures again, but lowered the speed, and they understood.

'There was no knife?' North rubbed his chin and the Sandman shook his head.

'It's because that was a bad memory.' Tooth suggested, thinking hard. 'When Jack woke up, he only had bad memories. Maybe Pitch didn't touch them so that Jack would only have sad or horrible thoughts.'

'Yes, I think you're right.' North nodded and put his hands on his hips, adjusting his trousers slightly.

_They turned back to the memory, but nothing had changed apart from the sky- which was now slightly deeper in colour, but darker too. A few clouds were smudged across the open expanse of unpolluted sky, lit up in their own colours, and Jack just sat and watched it. He barely moved. _

'Is there one here then?' Tooth asked, looking at Sandy as she fluttered.

Sandy shut his eyes tight, focusing his senses on finding the dagger. He started to float forwards, then abruptly stopped and looked underneath his feet. He pointed his tiny fingers downwards, and the three others just looked bewildered.

'It's **in** the cliff?!' Bunny shouted and revealed his teeth when he pulled his typical confused and disbelieving face.

Sandy shook his head, then made an image of the cliff in sand, with them all stood on top of it. They looked at him with baffled expressions, until he pointed up at his own animation.

'It **IS** the cliff?!' North exclaimed. Sandy smiled and nodded, and they all sighed.

'How are we supposed to destroy a _whole_ cliff face?!' Tooth flitted around, looking for anything that they could use. There was nothing- they were in a canyon after all.

'I don't know, but we should make it quick.' Bunny sighed. 'Bets on this mem'ry ending when the sun's gone.'

'Sandy?' North turned to the little golden man. 'Is there anything you can do?'

Sandy frowned slightly and patted his foot on imaginary ground- even though there was rock only a meter beneath him. He floated around to observe the cliff- there were cracks where the demon ended and the real memory canyon started, which helped. _It was connected to the one that Jack was sat on, and it was only now that he noticed that when this had really happened, he had been perched on a tiny upright pole. The rest had eroded away, leaving behind only a totem of rock with a flat top that was just big enough to seat the teenager with his arms back._ Sandy thought he was crazy, but then again, he was Jack Frost. He was known for crazy.

The Sandman thought for a long time while the other three Guardians admired the pretty memory. How could he possibly do this? Especially in the short amount of time they had! He came up with an idea, but knew it was going to involve a lot of effort on his part. It was the only thing he could think of that would work quickly enough.

Sandy quickly called the others over and made a dream sand cloud under his feet, which he motioned for them to stand on. Not questioning his authority in this situation, they obediently did so quietly and waited while they started to float upwards. Sandy moved them all to the next huge canyon cliff and set them down, knowing he needed as much dream sand as possible. He speedily returned to the air and positioned himself so that he was well in line with the memory demon and ready to take action. He sent his golden sand flying in great gushes- unlike the usual delicate tendrils- towards the fake cliff until they slammed it on all sides.

Slowly, the sand began to cover the whole rock until there was a layer of it on all sides. The sun was falling ever further behind the horizon and nobody noticed Jack relaxing his eyelids gently and smiling. _He enjoyed simple things in life- always had, always would. The soft wind rustled through his hair and played with it, and he wanted to tell it to stop and leave him be, that they'd play later, but he couldn't find the energy to do it. The gentle sunshine would have barely been warm for anyone else, but for him it was almost unbearable being sat in the direct glare for a long time- especially considering the location. But that's what he liked about it. It hurt a little bit, maybe a bit too much, but it gave him a thrill and reminded him he was alive. There was something comforting in the warmth, a feeling long forgotten that just made him happy, and that was all there was to it. He didn't feel like he needed an explanation for why, in this moment, he actually enjoyed heat. It felt homely, and that was a sensation Jack hadn't enjoyed for a long time. He cherished it, because it was also going to be the last time he felt like that in a long time. _

Sandy focused all of his attention and energy on what he was doing- lots of the demon had disappeared now, and it had halved in size underneath the sand. The dream granules ate away at each individual speck of dust and dirt, pulling the cliff apart and consuming it. He was having to use a lot of energy for this- Jack better be grateful when he woke up. His hands shook under the strain of keeping the assault going, and he made sure not even a grain of the dagger cliff was uncovered. The golden sand glinted delicately in the twilight, slowly but surely completely destroying the whole thing. Finally, there was a boulder sized piece of rock, then even that grew smaller, until Sandy released it from his sand and stumbled backward a little on his feet. He panted a little from the exertion and rubbed his head, and the others ran over to the edge of the ledge to support him, but he shooed them off with a reassuring smile.

They were still at equal level with Jack, but they hadn't noticed him changing position- he now crouched low with frog legs and pushed his head against his staff. His smile was infectious, and they couldn't help but want to grin back at him. It felt like years since they had seen him pull that face, one so full of adoration and joy. They could see now that the totem he sat on thinned out near the middle to barely the girth of a human, then got wider towards the top like a spindly hourglass. It only made them more concerned- it looked like it would crack and topple down at any given moment with Jack still sat on top, but they guessed otherwise due to the nature of the situation.

The final piece of the false cliff lay at the bottom of a large crevasse just below them, a dizzying way down. Sandy carefully swept them off their feet and onto a dream cloud then floated them down towards it. He knew they could all easily make the distance, but he wanted to save Bunny and North's knees from such a hard landing. He had made sure to keep his eye on the exact rock, as there were many others lying around and the light was fading fast. Within a few minutes, at most, this whole area would be plunged into blackness.

The Sandman made it quick- he picked up the demon and shoved it carelessly into a box of dream sand this time, then put a stupidly oversized padlock on it and tossed it at the nearest rock wall. The sand smashed and glittered away into nothingness, and the others could tell this one had annoyed him- he'd had to work fast and furiously to destroy it, which did not ease his weariness from everything that had been happening. He shut his warm yellow eyes and sighed, pushing down his annoyance, then opened them and smiled tiredly.

The light dissolved in seconds, and the Guardians couldn't even see each other- Sandy promptly picked them up again and they all went up to the same cliff opposite Jack. _He was stood up now, and as the Moon grew brighter and bolder, he rose into the air as if being pulled on a single string. He waited there like a puppet, dangling on the next to non-existent wind, and he simply stared. He just wanted the Man to say something- anything. To tell him he was wanted, that what he did was important and did mean something, but as always he got nothing. Not even a whisper. _

_The wind felt Jack's hidden pain and tousled his fringe, chattering in his ear excitedly. _

_'Yeah, I know.' he said softly, in response to something he didn't fully understand. 'Is one person's attention too much to ask?' he sighed. 'I guess so, huh.'_

_The Moon hid behind a cloud, and Jack ground his teeth together in frustration and almost anger. He could never be truly angry at the Man In The Moon- he had given him life- but he really could be a __**complete**__ dick sometimes. All Jack wanted was one word, one believer, one anything. One scrap of attention. _

_'Hey, if we can't find a believer to play with...' he grinned mischievously. 'It's Easter tomorrow, right?' _

_The wind picked up and almost threw him down to the ground- it was just as troublesome and impish in it's behaviour as Jack, and that's one of the reasons they got along so well. Except Jack kept it in check- the wind liked to cause much more destruction than him, and in a strange way, it was a lot crueller as well. Jack used his powers for fun as well as causing a little damage here and there, but he was more controlled and more playful in the way he went about it, so he made sure the wind never got too violent. _

_'Let's see if that Spirit of Hope will pay attention to us!' he laughed happily. _

Bunny was just about to explode with rage. He lifted a fist and inhaled sharply, but then blinked a few times as it sunk in what was happening. 'This is '68.' he said bluntly. 'And he... he didn't do it to make me mad. He did it so I'd pay him some notice.'

The other Guardians looked on him tenderly, knowing Bunny would have mixed feelings about this. The kid had still ruined Easter, and a little sob story behind his reasoning didn't excuse his reckless behaviour.

'I could _strangle_ him.' was all Bunny managed to let out as the scene disappeared and Jack flew away into the distance.


	43. A Family of Snow

_'Jack?' a girl called out- _a voice the Guardians had heard before... in Jack's weird episode he'd had during the blitz. This was the same girl.

_'Jack?' she called out again, cupping her hands around her mouth as she called out. _

_They were in a forest- the same as the one Jack had hidden in when he was so little. He was nowhere in sight, but the great pines were heavy and weighed down with a thick layer of snow, covering every branch and bare area of land. The girl was stood in a clearing, looking all around her as she shouted Jack's name, a confused expression that was laced with an endearing anticipation smeared across her features. She must have been about six years old? She definitely looked much younger than in that flashback Jack had had. _

The second she called out a third time, the three Guardians who hadn't known who she was suddenly stepped back and their eyes widened with realisation.

'Lily.' Tooth said with a grin, watching the others with mild amusement. Men could be so slow sometimes.

Now they observed her more closely. _Lily had huge Amber eyes- just like her big brother's when he was young- that flashed and sparkled with youth in the faint and washed out light. Her skin was mid-toned, not tanned but not pale, and she had a few inches past shoulder length brown hair. She had a fringe that almost covered her right eye, and just underneath that was a freckle that stood out against the smaller ones dotted around her plump face. She wore a small brown dress with thick tights underneath, and a big coat that had two huge buttons at the front. It should have had three, but it had obviously fallen off, and the thread used to secure it fell in a frayed and tattered lock down the front. The broken edges showed where she had fiddled with the loose string. _

_It was late morning and the pale sun shone bright down onto the wintery scene below, flickering off the snow like it was encrusted with tiny diamonds. _

_'Do you admit defeat?' Jack's familiar voice echoed in hollow dullness through the dense woodland. _

_'Yes!' Lily cried out in frustration. 'You win! Just come out already!' she panicked as she looked around for her brother. _

_'Alright!' Jack chuckled. 'I'm coming.' _

_A crack of wood splintered and fell with a loud thud, and Lily gasped. 'Jack!' she called out, but this time in worry. _

**_'JACK!'_**_ she shouted again, and the pained groans of his voice grew louder. _

_Twigs snapped clumsily and Jack appeared from the cover of a small tree holding his side tightly. He looked younger- not by much- a couple of years, maybe. He wasn't as tall and his face was rounder, less definite, and that explained the slight change in the pitch of his voice. He wore similar brown trousers to the ones he still donned to this day, but they were different- almost black. He, just like his younger sibling, was huddled in big winter wear, but he still looked just as skinny. His face crumpled in twisting pain, and Lily inhaled shallowly before running to her brother. _

_'Jack, what- where-' she panted, slowing her thoughts, then placed a hand on his arm. He fell to the ground and lay on his front, barely aware of his surroundings. __**'Jack! No, no! Stay awake! What happened?!'**__ she was shrieking now, her tone growing ever shriller. _

The Guardians were sick with worry. They knew that being a human made the body much weaker, and if Jack had injured himself it would be a lot more deadly than if he did after he was chosen. At least they knew he had survived it.

_'Listen to me! Stay still and I'll get help!' she started to flit her eyes all about the scene around them, trying desperately to find anything or anyone that would help. _

_As she began to run away, Jack started to laugh. At first his giggles were muted and contained, but eventually they turned into full out howls. 'Your face!' he gasped between breaths of laughter. _

_Lily turned furiously on her heels and clenched her fists tight. The dirt and snow beneath her toes mingled together under the soles of her shoes, and the expression on her face gave away her overwhelming anger. _

_'I cannot understand you, Jack!' she shouted. 'That's... that's horrible! I thought... I thought you were hurt, you were dying! I've had enough of this.' she turned away again and started towards another section of forest. _

_Jack only wanted to laugh more, but the intonation in the way she spoke told him to do otherwise. 'Ah, come on!' he sighed and stood to his feet, shaking and brushing himself down. 'I was just joking!'_

_'And that's the problem!' she said with her head still facing the other way. _

_'I was just having a bit of fun!' he jested. _The Guardians were taken aback. He'd always gone too far with his centre from time to time.

_'Fun for __**you**__!' she huffed. Jack sighed and shuffled along behind her. _

_They followed a thin path silently for a few minutes, Jack occasionally trying to grab her attention or say sorry, but she wasn't having it. _The Guardians laughed at how similarly stubborn she was to her brother. _Soon enough, they came out into a very small clearing, where two other tightly wrapped figures were wandering around. _

_'Mom, Jack pretended to be hurt to trick me!' Lily whined, and the two adults snapped their heads up. _

_'Jack, you know what we've said about your tricks going too far.' their father said firmly. _

The Guardians just smiled at Andrew- they had figured that was his name from what Roger had said._ He was well built and strong, but in his face... they could see Jack. His warm eyes were Amber to the extent that they were practically orange. They shone in delicately dappled shades of brown and flaming tangerine, so bright they brought every attention off any other part of his face and forced you to stare. How Jack didn't topple over from guilt when he saw them the Guardians didn't know. His thick chestnut beard looked the sort that a little kid would love to grab a handful of, only maybe half an inch off his cheeks and chin. _

_The look on Andrew's face was so determined and his jaw was locked firmly in place- the look of a man who was ready to discipline. It was an extremely tough and almost frightening expression- his thick eyebrows knitted tightly together as he stared down his son- one that you wouldn't want to face in a bar after a couple of drinks. _

_Jack stared back with forceful intent before flicking his gaze away from his father- he never broke that look, so he might as well give up now. The tension in the air was high and sticky. _

_'I was just joking.' Jack said low and strongly, much the same as his serious tone as a Guardian. _

_'Jokes go too far.' Andrew still didn't break his cognac stare. 'Jackson, just think about what you're doing, alright?' _

_'Yes dad.' Jack said through gritted teeth. He still called him by his full name occasionally, but he was pretty much the only person who was allowed to address him as such. _

_'Good!' Andrew broke his fierce expression and instantly beamed a smile, his tired eyes framed by small crow's feet on each- but not from frowning. From grinning. He was that sort of father. Lily ran up to him and he lifted her high up in his arms, laughing and even balancing her upside down. Here was his loving fatherly side. _

_Emma walked over to Jack, who was smirking at his family. He kicked his covered toes into the snow beneath his feet and some of the powder flew up a little. He chuckled through his nose at the sight. _

_'Something up?' Emma asked while picking up a few pieces of wood. She looked brighter this time- happier. They guessed it was because she hadn't thought that her son had gone missing in this memory. _

_'No, I'm fine.' Jack grinned at her, and his hair bounced and flopped over his forehead. It was brown and his eyes were brown and... it was weird. _

_'Jack, I know when you're lying.' Emma tutted with a sideways glance. 'These "Uhh, don't worry, I'm fine, I'm alright, never felt better"- I don't believe any of them. They come into your vocabulary too often when there's something wrong for me to ever think otherwise when you say one of them. Now please, what's wrong?'_

The Guardians weren't sure how to react. Every time Jack said he was fine, he was lying? They knew that he hid his emotions and troubles as if the world depended on it, but _every_ time? They would never have believed it if it hadn't been uttered from his mother.

_'I don't know.' Jack let out a breath and looked down, then swept his arm to pull up sticks of his own. 'Dad doing… that. Lily growing so quickly… The winter months. Lots of things, I guess.'_

_'Well, for a start, your father is just trying to protect you. You know that.' Emma carried her logs over to a pile rested on a square of tough and dirty fabric and dumped them with the rest. Jack did the same. 'I think __**you're**__ growing up too quickly for him.' She stretched her back out and took a deep breath._

_'You okay?' Jack asked, putting a hand out to his mother to support her if she needed it._

_'Yes, but thank you.' She smiled and squeezed his hand gently. 'Jack, please don't worry. I know what winter can be like for us, but it will be alright. I can try to get some sort of job if we need, especially so that you don't hurt yourself again.'_

_'Mom…' Jack sighed. 'We've been through this before.'_

_'I know, I know!' she nodded her head. 'But really, you're still very young. Eleven isn't the typical age to be out in the fields or repairing houses.'_

_'Hey, I'm twelve in two months!' He retorted with fake bitterness._

_'As I have been reminded on many occasions.' Emma winked at him playfully and he giggled. 'But really, I already felt guilty enough when you went out to work, and again when you got hurt…' her eyes darkened as if a storm had settled over them. 'I can't have you carried back to me like that again, Jack, I really can't. You're too precious to me.'_

_'As __**I**__ have been reminded.' Jack beamed a pure and brilliant smile that stunned the Guardians. _Truth be told, they had never seen a grin so innocent and full of nothing but joy on his face- and they doubted they ever would. He'd lived too long and experienced and seen too many things to be so virtuously happy anymore. By the sounds of it, he had injured himself working- badly, too- and at such a young age? It wasn't even slightly uncommon at the time, but still. It sort of hit it home for them.

_Jack reached out and took his mother's hand in his own again when she started to turn away. 'I think it's you I should be telling not to worry.' His smile flashed back and she greeted his comfort with the same expression. 'That was an accident. A stupid, stupid accident.' Emma silently chuckled at the familiar phrase. 'And I'm not going to make it ever again. I was careless, and because of it, you could all have lost me.' He tossed a glance towards his father and sister, who were wandering around and admiring the vining patterns threaded across the snow. 'You'll never lose me, I promise. I'm not leaving you anytime soon.'_

_'I'll never leave you either. As long as I can help it, and for as long as I can hold it off, I'll keep this family going. No matter what!' she smiled weakly, knowing one day she'd leave them behind, and the time seemed to ever grow nearer as the baby she thought she'd held only days before suddenly transformed into this growing boy in front of her. _

_Jack and Emma shared a warm, brown eyed stare with each other, clasping tired and calloused hands tightly. He absorbed her face and the love that was there. And when she reached for his other hand sharply and tugged him by it and started lightly bobbing up and down, he didn't even flinch. He laughed._

Sandy, North, Tooth and Bunny couldn't grasp that this child in front of them was the same Jack that they knew. He was exactly the same, yet so different. He had been forced to make unexpected contact, but instead of attacking or backing away from the person who did it, he grinned and went along with it. The Jack Frost they knew would never let anybody help him or touch him without permission, and even if he did have to make physical contact he wouldn't be happy about it. But it clicked in their heads as they mulled over his personality- _three hundred years. _Need they say more to themselves? Guilt panged again, just as they had been feeling in half of his memories so far. It wasn't quite as enjoyable as they had persuaded themselves before they went delving into the deepest crevices of his mind. Here, Jack was bubbly and loving and warm- all things that he showed hints of in his immortal life, but never fully. He could be those things, but they were never shown outwardly and on the surface.

He was just so…_ charming_. He was so lovely and caring, and the positivity almost oozed out of him. His love and affection towards his family could be summed up and seen in just these few exchanges with his mother, father and sister, even if they hadn't been amazingly happy. He was a wonderful brother and son, and that was all there was to it.

_'Come on- we may not have music, but still!' Emma laughed with her son as he guided her with his arms and danced. They moved gently together across the frosted ground in practised movements and turns._

'Frost knows how to **_dance_**?!' Bunny chortled outwardly.

_Despite their winter wear, Jack and his mother danced effortlessly. They stopped abruptly when he was pelted with a snowball to the face. Emma clasped a hand over her mouth to stop a cackle of laughter from escaping her lips, as she realised that Jack was pulling an extremely angry face. He wiped the wet snow that slid down his flushed cheeks and opened his eyes blankly, then turned menacingly to see where it had come from. Unsurprisingly, it was his younger sister._

_'Did you really…' Jack said quietly in a rage, and everyone there held their breaths while they waited for him to make his next move in his volatile state. 'You really just… when you know how easily I can __**beat you!**__' he cried out, his mood changing instantly as he bent down and scooped up snow into his hands. _

_Lily proceeded to start screaming giddily and ran away to hide behind some trees as she avoided Jack's incessant hits. Their father did, too, being the other who had plotted to get his wife and son involved in a snowball fight. It was one of the rare days off he got, and he planned to spend it having as much fun as he could._

'Come, we find knife now.' North said gently as all-out snow war raged around them.

The Guardians punctually started searching the ground and trees for anything, and Sandy focused deeply on his new power. But the warm sensation of the dagger… it was on Jack. It wasn't on the ground or hidden in the snow, it was just radiating from him. But it couldn't _be_ him? No, it was glowing on him, not from him. Something had been planted _on_ him.

The Sandman alerted the attention of the three other Guardians with a ball of snow to the face, but Bunny presumed it was from one of the Frost family. He turned angrily, only to see Sandy frantically waving to catch his attention. Once they were all by the Guardian of Dreams, he pointed to Jack's side.

'Jack has it?' Tooth asked. Sandy was getting tired of this constant questioning about the dagger. He nodded politely, not letting his annoyance spill out because it would only make them more confused. He made the image of Jack's coat, removing sand in the cut out shape of the dagger inside, near his chest.

'But we can't touch him.' North shook his head. 'How can we get?'

'Ooo, idea!' Tooth chirped up and didn't even tell them the plan.

_She flitted over to where Jack was crouched low down on the ground, avoiding a new attack from all three of his other family members who were currently working together to defeat him. Even with this newfound strength of ganging up, he knew they wouldn't win- he was an expert when it came to snowball fights._

Tooth waited for him to stand up so that she had a good point to aim at. As soon as he was upright she plunged her hand towards his back as if she was about to punch him, but of course she couldn't in a memory. Obviously meaning to do what she was doing, she didn't flinch at all, and neither did Jack while he threw a snowball. Sandy, Bunny and North's jaws all dropped to the floor. It looked like Tooth had half of her arm inside Jack, and she searched around blindly by touch, a concentrating look on her face.

'Would you stop moving?' she said in a high pitched and frustrated tone as she dug her fist around inside his chest. It looked extremely weird. As if she actually had her hand… inside his chest. 'Ahh… _aha!_' she called out and her face lit up as she latched her palm onto something. She wrenched her hand effortlessly back out of Jack, in her hand the dagger itself, but tiny. It was barely even the size of her finger- a miniature version.

Tooth walked back over to the Guardians, leaving the human Jack to continue his battle. 'That's probably the weirdest thing I've ever done.' She stated simply as she opened her hand and presented the knife to the others.

Sandy took it between two fingers and observed it closely, before shoving it in another sand bag and shaking it up. He smiled and dusted his hands off, even though there was nothing on them.

_'Alright, alright!' Lily laughed, but she was lying on the floor and shielding her head from the pummelling she was receiving from her brother. 'You win! __**You win!**__'_

_'Yeah, __**I do!**__' Jack said firmly, hands planted on his hips. 'As always!'_

_'We will beat you one day!' Andrew laughed and brushed off the white powder from his beard and clothes. He really was built a bit like a bear- but apparently, his son inherited none of that bulkiness._

_'Not in a hundred winters!' Jack ran at his sister and tackled her back to the ground, from which she had only just stood._

_'Get off!' she said, but it wasn't serious. She was giggling, and loved the attention really._

_'Nope!' Jack started tickling her to no end, and her face started to grow red as she struggled to heave the oxygen into her lungs. 'Never!'_

_'Co-co-come o-on!' Lily could barely get the words out she was laughing so much. 'St-stop!'_

_'Jack, get off your sister!' Emma said tiredly, so instead Jack pulled Lily up into his arms and threw her over his shoulders, where she sat quite contentedly. _

_'Right, home, and let's get this fire started!' Andrew collected up the square of fabric containing the logs from the four corners, gathering it together to create a sort of sack. He slung it over his burly shoulders and started to retrace their mangled footprints home. _

_'Run, run!' Lily called out from high up on her brother's scrawny shoulders._

_'You wanna run?' Jack laughed and tried to look up at his sibling, but the angle was wrong. 'You're getting too big for this, you know.' He puffed as his body felt the strain of her ever growing body weight sink into his spine._

_'Run!' Lily repeated, now reverting back to her childlike self. 'I'll never be too big! Giddy up horsey!'_

_'Alright, alright!' Jack sighed then sprinted on ahead of their parents, who they scoffed at for holding hands, panting breaths in and out of his tired body. Lily weaved her small fingers into Jack's brown hair, tracing the smoothness of his scalp all the way down to his forehead. His lips curved upwards at the edges in sheer elation, glad that his sister enjoyed this. _

_Lily cried out in euphoric wails, occasionally daring to lift her hands off Jack's head, leaving her with a scary imbalance that threatened to knock her to the ground a long way down in her viewpoint. She laughed and grinned as they went, and occasionally Jack joined in, giggling giddily. Their parents called out behind them, shouting something, but what it was nobody was sure of. The trees flashed past in a blur of brown and white, and just as the small house came into view, it was as if the snow fell over everything, and the laughs of a happy family echoed until they were gone._

* * *

**A/N**

Hello again my dearest readers!

I am so, so, so sorry- this is three days late ;_; School started and I just seemed to get caught up in loads of things, so I hope the sheer length of this chapter might persuade you to forgive me. Updates might be a lot less frequent, if school and dance get in the way. So sorry about that, but then that's not so bad- it's still quite regular. Yeah, I'm in year 11 at school now, the second year of my GCSEs :) Then onto A-Levels... *sigh* I've stayed up very late to get you this chapter, and so I'll let you know that coming up is more Lily, Emma, Andrew, Megan and retells! And then, of course, Jamie back in reality. How exciting!

Anyway, keep R&R-ing my beautiful ROTG fans, and following and favouriting, too!

Emily! xxx :3 You all get a beautiful Easter egg, hand painted by E. Aster Bunnymund himself, for waiting three days longer than you should have.


	44. Tea Time and Out Time

**You might want to make yourself some tea or hot chocolate or food or something, because this is the longest chapter so far- and I have no idea how! I only started writing it today, so there, the longest chapter of the story finished in just a few hours! O.o Anyway, read on! :)**

**Deep breath...**

* * *

_'Okay, okay, I'll come!' Jack's voice and the commotion of a city was all that the Guardians could hear. 'But you have to remember, if there are people, they won't be able to see me.' There was some shuffling and the quiet of no response from whoever he was talking to. 'People will give you weird looks if you keep talking to nothing.'_

_Finally, the memory appeared. Jack was being dragged along a long and wide street of endlessly connected houses by none other than the little blonde girl who they had briefly grown to know in war time London. Megan tugged on his new sweater sleeve silently, gesturing happily with her face that she wanted him to come with her. The city itself was bustling with people, alive with voices and movement and working men and women. It must have been mid-afternoon by now, as the sun was slightly lower in the sky but still softly warm in the winter weather. _

_'Where are we going, anyway?' Jack asked distantly, too busy admiring the hard work of the Londoners around him to pay much attention to where they were. _

_After the blasts the night before, everything was being either fixed or searched. Houses that had crumbled and collapsed lay in sad and ominous piles in the street, children and adults alike searching beneath the rubble. Smoke still wafted from some debris, but no-one dared to go near those. The English were amazingly good at the whole process- and surely, they had gotten used to this by now. Parts of the city were knocked down one day, cleared the next, and rebuilt or left only days after. The pace of recovery was astounding. _

_'Please answer me, Megan.' Jack pleaded with her, finally bringing his attention back to the matter at hand. _

_The girl just stared ashamedly up at him, not wanting to utter a single word after how much she had spoken last night. _

_'Huh, you weren't lying when you said you don't talk much.' Jack sighed at his practically mute believer, but smiled weakly so she wouldn't be uncomfortable. Megan responded with a happy grin, but kept on pulling him faster and faster down the road until they were almost running. 'We nearly there?' he asked, and she nodded strongly. _

The Guardians followed quickly after, enjoying the atmosphere of this place. It wasn't happy- in fact, it was far from it. People wore tattered clothes and lived in dirty little homes with huge families, but there was at least a sense of community. They got the feeling that if someone was in need this was the sort of neighbourhood where your whole street would come out and help with the physical work.

_Jack stared at the torn paper peeling at the sides that had been glued firmly to a brick wall long ago, portraying a man in uniform leaning over a young boy. It said in big red and black letters across the bottom "__**LEAVE THIS TO US SONNY- YOU OUGHT TO BE OUT OF LONDON.**__" The red ink had faded to a sickly pink-orange, and the black to light grey. The picture was barely eligible, only the figures in the front eerily showing up on the crisp and yellowing paper. There must have been a background when it was new. Jack was fully aware of the evacuation process running throughout all of the big cities in Britain in 1939, but that had been more than a year ago now. Why hadn't Megan and her family left? Then again, a lot of people stayed exactly where they were and nobody seemed to notice or care enough to report them or do anything about it, especially considering these were the poor areas of the capital. The dangers were all too real though, as Megan herself had been shown only the night before. He wondered if she'd ever seen anything like it before. _

A few minutes passed hurriedly walking through the busy streets, and Sandy and Tooth enjoyed the fact that they didn't have to walk through the crowds._ After a short run down a flight of stone steps, Megan pulled Jack to a wide and open square, where nobody was gathered. The houses that lined the cobbled plaza were run down or even non-existent, and bits of metal and rocks lay dusted and coated in thick layers of ash over the pebbles. A few rusty chairs lay around next to a half burnt down building, only a piece of a sign hanging there. It said "Cornish-" but stopped there, as the rest of the cold metal had melted in whatever immense heat had once existed in those walls and had dripped onto the ground and fire. A few strands of molten silvery metal were stuck in time, having solidified when they had only partly trickled off, leaving tiny tears hanging down towards the ground and never making the distance. Windows were smashed, and ruined ordinary household belongings were scattered around the place. _

'If there was ever an alternate definition of creepy, _this _was definitely it.' Bunny said morosely.

'Picking up on anything Sandy?' Tooth ignored Bunny's comment, more to deny how unnerving this place was to herself than to annoy him.

Sandy shrugged absently and shut his eyes, thinking hard like he had been doing all day. Wait, was it even the same day back in the real world? The passing of time seemed completely irrelevant and impossible to detect here, but who knew how long they had all been traipsing around Jack's memories for?

_'Megan...' Jack said absentmindedly, eyeing up the square as he walked into it. 'Do you come here often?' she responded with a few flutters of her eyes, shooting a pursed-lipped smile in his direction. _

_Everyone edged closer to the centre. There had been some grass here once, they could tell, but it was long gone with whatever had destroyed all the homes- and maybe even some of the lives- of the people. The back end of a rocking horse was charred and faintly painted, motionless on the ground next to them as they walked past. _

'Talk about eery.' North shuddered at the sad remains of a once beautiful toy. He always felt a little part of him wince and churn when he saw an unfixable or destroyed toy.

_Megan hastily pulled up one of the rickety metal chairs that had belonged to the café and then set another opposite it. She gestured gruffly for Jack to sit, so he did as he was told. She took a small table as well, placing a thin napkin she had in her pocket on the top daintily and laying out a cracked and dirty tea set. She had salvaged them from the side of the café that was still standing, feeling very lucky that she had managed to find a close to unscathed set. _

_Jack chuckled lightly to himself as she set this all up very professionally in front of him, finishing with a yellow flower- a buttercup- in a dangerously chipped purple vase. She had picked it from the side of the street on the way here. It was even more amusing that she couldn't fully reach the table- being so small, she had to lean up on her tiptoes, and all Jack could see of her was the top of her hat and a few locks of frizzed hair. Her arm lifted to place the items on the table, and he felt as if he were a giant being served by a normal sized person. _

_When she was done arranging, Megan wrenched herself up onto the other empty chair and positioned herself comfortably. She lifted up her hand to the front of her woollen hat with a cap and pulled on it to let out her hair and show her face. She smiled eagerly up at him. _

The Guardians realised they hadn't once seen her face properly._ Her hair was blonde, browner near the roots where it hadn't been bleached by the sun, but dirty nonetheless. It fell in matted and knotted twists and waves well past her shoulders, lilting in the gentle wind. Her face had smudges of soot and mud smeared across it, but she didn't seem even slightly bothered by it. _Then they gathered around a little closer, and they saw her eyes._ They were blue- but not light or powdery. Instead they were deep and dense, in the direct light tinted turquoise and in the shade an alerting midnight blue. They were beautiful. Her skin was freckled every so often, but pale, and she did look sickly. It wasn't that surprising, really. Her nose was tiny and only really stuck out from her face at the very tip, still holding on to the childish shape and size of her very early years. Her shoes were a deep red, scuffed at the front and edges where they had worn down over time. A couple of varied length skirts fell down to halfway along her shins, fraying at the bottom where the fabric had gotten caught in something or cut. It was difficult to know which. Her thick coat that buttoned at the front was almost black, different from the one she had worn the night before, as this day was colder. _

_They could see their breaths, but it didn't bother either of them, Jack the least. Frost had settled on the city that night, despite the bombing. Megan sat with a warming grin facing her new friend, unable to really say anything. He just stifled small laughs at the excitable young girl in front of him, still in shock that she could see him. She lifted her gloved hand cautiously and pointed at her hair, pulling a confused expression at him. _

_'Oh!' Jack realised. 'It's naturally like this. I don't bleach it or dye it or anything. Don't ask me why it's like this.'_

_Megan looked all the more elated. She realised how unladylike she was behaving and quickly wiped down the front of her coat and picked up the teapot. She had to kneel on the chair to reach over the table, but Jack fumbled for his cup and held it out for her to pour the imaginary beverage into. She tipped it up with the spout clinking against the edge of the porcelain cup and held the chipped lid so that none would come out of the huge hole on the top. She'd practiced this many times, observing how the waiters did it in the restaurants by staring through the windows, but she'd never had to serve someone else before. Jack lifted a hand delicately when she had been "pouring" for a while, signalling for her to stop. She brought the pot over to her cup and tipped some out for herself, then replaced it on the table and put her hat over the top as a tea cozy. It had to stay warm. _

_'You know, I prefer it cold.' Jack said with a smirk and dipped one finger past the rim of his cup, pretending to cool it down like he had done in the past. Slowly, snow started to drift just over their heads, and he smiled proudly as she gasped up at the sky. It didn't last for long, but she was ecstatic nonetheless. He sipped at his make-believe tea and swallowed hard and obvious, especially so that she would notice the effort he was putting into this. He'd never really played with a kid before, not properly anyway. Not with them actually able to see him and talk to him. _

_Megan did the same, her little finger lifted away as a little posh gesture. She pointed to her back in the same way as she had her hair. _

_'It's fine.' Jack reassured. 'Give it a week and it'll all be gone and better.' _

_The girl grinned and turned back to her tea, but this time decided to not be so dainty. She picked it up and jokingly swallowed the whole thing in one go, her head thrown backwards. Jack let out a yelling laugh that echoed around the empty plaza. _

_'Why does nobody come here?' Jack asked solemnly when they had finished "drinking". 'It would be beautiful if it was fixed.'_

_The two both imagined the square jostling with noisy youngsters and adults sat in the street eating and chatting. The sun would be shining and people would be laughing heartily, and as Jack thought about it, it came true in his memories. The whole square flickered and changed- the light was tinted orange but it was clear, and there were people everywhere. Flowers were set out on delicately painted tables, couples and families sat in the decadent chairs that the two now sat in, although they were new and a brilliant white. The sellers in small stalls shouted out about their products and elegant ladies in long dresses and the new nylon stockings strutted over the cobbles, being careful not to trip over themselves. The sun beat down over everything, some children chasing hoops and each other and giddily laughing. A single young tree grew in the centre surrounded by blooming multi-coloured flowers, with bees buzzing around the sweet nectar. Birds tweeted and cooed to one another from rooftops, chirping and swiftly gliding across the brashly painted sky. Blues and pinks in the clouds merged together like ink in water, swirling and shimmering in the half light. A couple sat hugging on the lawn, admiring the watercolour sky and the excitement of the people. The smell of bread and sweet pastries wafted through the air, and a lady in a window of one of the houses hit her dusty rug over the wall, being careful to avoid the window boxes stuffed with nasturtiums and petunias in the room across. _

_But the beautiful scene disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared_, and instead the Guardians were faced with the dull grey and blue of the broken wintery scene. It was close to heartbreaking to see Jack's creation dissolve, especially as they knew full well that it could have been how this square looked before the war.

_The only flower that grew was a small pink cyclamen, sat in the cracks of the old stones beneath their feet and just to the side, and noticing what Jack was looking at, Megan quickly got up. From her coat she pulled a flask, filled with the only water she had. She poured it gently on the plant despite the cold, as she had been doing throughout the winter. Jack smiled at her with interest- he didn't really understand how plants worked and that sort of thing, but he knew that they needed good soil, water, and lots of sunlight. _

_When she was done, she sat on the cold ground. Jack stood above her, looking down with staff in hand. She opened her coat a little and reached into a deeper pocket after putting the flask away- Jack wondered what else she could fit in that bottomless jacket. Her hand appeared again, though this time holding a hairbrush with a few broken bristles and her own hair wound around them. _

_Jack just grinned. Something about him told him he had done this before. He took the brush and sat down cross-legged behind the girl, and she released all of her blonde knots down her back. Jack started to comb through it, starting near the bottoms because it would only tangle more if he began at the roots, slowly and gently. Megan's head nodded back and forth from the gentle pull, listening to the sound of the knots being pulled loose. She hadn't brushed her hair in a while. _

_Jack got to the last few tangles and therapeutically combed through them, pressing down on the strands with his hand each time. Then he placed the brush on the top of her head, smoothing down the whole length of her hair with each stroke, his face relaxed and happy. _

The Guardians were elated. Bunny felt like he needed to punch a wall or do something to make him feel manly, but he knew he wouldn't and that he should just shut up and enjoy it. Meanwhile, Tooth, Sandy and North all held in squeals of delight. This was possibly the cutest thing they had ever seen their harsh Spirit of Winter do. He was so gentle and caring.

_Jack continued brushing the blonde hair even when it wasn't matted anymore, because they both enjoyed it. He was glad there was nobody there to see this. He shuffled so that he now sat kneeling on his feet, as the stones had started getting slightly uncomfortable. He pulled her hair up a bit, then used the brush to split it and part it right down the middle. The lengths of each strand were uneven and messy, but he thought it looked nice. _

It reminded the Guardians of Sophie's hair, except longer and browner.

_Jack gathered one of the halves of her locks and split that into three, and held them between his fingers. _

Tooth held in a dizzying scream when she realised what he was doing.

_Jack started to turn the separate strands over and over each other, plaiting them neatly. When one side was done, he snagged loose a string from his black woolly jumper and snapped it off using his ice. He tied it around the ends tightly and left it to dangle, then moved a little to the other side. _

_Megan's eyes were shut tight and she smiled as she sat, letting this boy tie her hair up in side plaits. She wasn't even aware he was doing it, she just knew that she liked it when people played with her hair. The soft tugging at her scalp was lulling and relaxing, and she had been known to fall asleep when her mum tied it. _

_Jack finished the other side with another neat bow with the wool, admiring his work and how precise it was. But then he wondered how he knew how to do that, because he had never learnt to. Was it something everyone was born being able to do? He guessed so, for immortals anyway. Quickly moving off the subject, he stood up to show that he was done. _

_Megan looked up at the figure above her and noticed the pale orange of the setting sun in the distance behind his head, then remembered that he had been doing her hair. She quickly stood and grabbed hold of the plaits in her fists, shaking them joyously. _

_'I hope you like them!' Jack laughed at how happy she was. Megan instantly responded by frantically nodding her head and jumping up and down. She flung herself at him, hugging him as tightly as she possibly could, and he didn't shy away from it this time- he just bent down and held her back, despite his difficulty finding a comfortable position with arms so long around a body so small. They held it for a minute, until Megan pulled away and started running around like a caffeine fuelled Jack Russell. She hopped around and made sure to occasionally stare at the plaits in happiness, really admiring how well Jack had done them. She didn't think boys could do things like that. _

_'Megan, it's getting dark.' Jack started, hating to have to kill the fun. 'You should get home. We can play more tomorrow, okay? Here, I'll take you back.'_

_Megan smiled weakly, obviously sad she had to go home, but she knew it was true. She'd told her sister she'd be home already, so it really was getting late. She picked up all her tea set and hid it away behind a mound of rubble, then knocked the chairs and table back over. That was the worst part of going home- everything looked sad again. She decided not to put on her hat, since her hair looked so nice- she didn't want to ruin it. Jack waited at the alley where they had come from, his staff flung over his shoulder. Surprisingly, he had managed not to have any snowball fights or really do anything to do with his powers today, which was a nice change he supposed. It was probably the longest he'd spent awake only using his abilities once, and he grinned at the thought. _

_Megan bounded along, then slipped her hand inside his. Instantly, she flinched and pulled away, a spark of ice flickering across her skin. Jack looked down in concern- her face looked as if she was just about to start whimpering, but she just reached out again and took his hand once more, prepared for the cold this time. She smiled, and he was relieved he hadn't hurt her. They walked along, talking about all sorts- Jack's powers, Megan's family, their lives. Well, he had to guess things and she would nod or shake her head as a response. _

_'Hey, I've got a present for you.' Jack said gently when they were past a big group of people. Megan looked up with genuine joy, and Jack simply bared his teeth at her. _

_Softly, he tuned into the wind and twirled it around his fingers, orchestrating it in his clutches. He lifted it and flicked it towards the girl, where it flew around her ears and rustled her hair. She gasped in elation and jumped up and down as they continued to walk. Now Jack wanted to pull his easy move, but it was the one that always seemed to delight people the most. He simply made the air above obey him, and clouds shifted over the dark city. After only a few seconds, snow started to drift towards the ground. It got heavier and heavier, beginning to settle on the ground, and Megan turned to her friend with a tear in her eye, knowing that he had done this for her. _

They continued to walk, and that's when Sandy picked up on the feel of the dagger. He was glad this memory wasn't about to turn sour. He pointed to a fork that had dropped to the ground under a table at a closed café, and for once, the Guardians actually saw him the first time around. At least this one was easy to find- he still needed a break after that huge cliff face in the canyon.

_'This?_' North chuckled at the feeble and strange choice of disguise. But he shrugged and placed it into Sandy's bag, where it was almost instantly destroyed.

They caught up to Jack and Megan as fast as they could, not wanting to miss a minute.

_When they arrived back, it was completely dark. Megan hugged and waved goodbye, and Jack did the same back. But the memory didn't end there. The Winter Spirit waited outside the run down house for several minutes, just to make sure everything was alright. He sat on the doorstep he had the night before and pulled his legs tight up into himself, focusing on bringing as much snow as he could. He was aware it posed a danger to the city- it would make it more visible from the air, but he had a feeling they weren't getting attacked today. After only a few minutes, everyone heard deep and gruff shouts from inside the walls. _

_Jack flicked his head and stood up straight away on instinct, becoming concerned for his believer. He flew up to a window and listened as carefully as he could- not much was audible, but it was enough. _The Guardians didn't even need to get close- if Jack remembered the words, they would hear them.

_'A boy?!' a man shouted in angry tones. 'You were with a boy, weren't you?!'_

_There was no response, and Jack's breathing only increased as he heard the horrible words that he knew the girl was too afraid to respond to. _

_''oo else knows 'ow to do that?!' he spat drunkenly. They knew it was her father. The other children listened from just outside, and Megan curled in on herself. 'Only y'ur muther, and she's gone! Bloody pig tails! You go 'ungry t'night darlin'. I'm not givin' you shit!'_

_Everyone gasped as they heard a thud. Jack wanted to fly right through the window and give that man a piece of his mind, but he controlled his anger and just clenched his fists instead of infuriating himself. Megan's father had hit her to the floor. _

_''ow dare you let a __**boy**__ do what __**she**__ did!' he continued, and the whole house fell silent. __**'GET OUT!'**__ the man screamed, and Megan left as quickly as her legs would let her. All of her siblings looked down on her sadly as she left, but she shut the door quickly, not wanting to face them any longer. _

_Jack hurried to her side, unsure what to do. 'This...' he quivered, inspecting the lump forming on her cheek. 'This is my fault...' he quickly swung in, unable to think of anything else to do, and hugged her tightly. _

_Megan whimpered into Jack's shoulder, and he took her up in his arms like he had done only the night before. Tears fell silently down her face as she kept in sobs. Jack didn't care about anything else. The snow rumbled the sky, getting heavier and colder. He told her to hold on, then took off into the sky and moved her so that she could see. _

_'We're...' her voice cracked. 'We're __**flying!**__' she laughed and stared down, forgetting about everything else for a brief moment. The city loomed below, glowing a little white while covered with the snow, and the biting air chilled her cheeks. So that's why they said "nipping at your nose", she thought, experiencing the sensation. _

_Jack still didn't feel any better despite her glee. He took her back down to the ground, not far from her home, and landed them on the pavement. Luckily, no-one was around to see a girl somehow float down from the sky, as they were all inside for the blackout. He collapsed into the ground and ran his hands through his hair, hating this feeling inside of him. What was it?_

_Jack was experiencing... Was it? Was it guilt?_

_He'd __**never**__ felt like this before. Normally, when he'd frozen someone's tongue to a pole or their washing to the line, or even accidentally killed people in his cold, he didn't feel like this. Yeah, he hated injuring people badly or worse, but it just sort of came with his season. They should have been better prepared was what he always said, but it didn't feel that way anymore. This was horrible. His stomach felt bottomless and empty, all except for a stone at the bottom. _

_Megan sat across from him, pulling on a string of her messed up plait and absently thinking about the dull throb in her cheek. Jack looked up to see her gently rub it, and moved forward instantly. Without words, he lifted his hand to her face and lay his cold palm on her bruise. She shuddered under his touch for a moment, but then managed to muster up a tiny smile. He didn't smile back, and his expression just looked full of pain. He wanted to turn back time and never meet her so that she wouldn't have been hurt. _

_'I'm sorry.' Jack said with such genuine feeling he almost choked. He'd barely ever said honest words about feelings to anyone in his life. _

_Megan shook her head and brought her hands up to motion for a hug. Jack didn't refuse- he didn't even think about refusing. Her face was cooler and less painful, but she could still feel the lump forming. _

_'I'll look after you tonight, Megan.' Jack offered- but it was a demand, not an offer. 'You can stay with me and I'll protect you, okay? It's the least I can do.' _

_She fumbled with her fingers for a while before looking up and shrugging half-heartedly. His eyes narrowed dangerously, so she nodded in agreement. _

_'Alright.' he sighed and rubbed his head, sitting next to the nearly mute girl he had only met yesterday but felt as if he had known for years. He really had a believer. _

_And she just got hit and thrown out of her house because of him. _

_Great. _

_It was getting late already- they hadn't realised how long they had been out, and neither had the Guardians. Jack must have remembered it flying past, and that's why the hours came and went so quickly. It was coming up to ten o'clock now, and Jack wanted to suggest to go somewhere else, but Megan interjected. _

_'I've... been out on the street before.' she said with difficulty, heavily reciting each word as she strained to say as little as possible. 'Sleeping. Here is as safe as it gets.'_

_'Well, we'll stay here then.' Jack smiled, and they shuffled back towards a wall. Once there, Jack forced a quick burst of blinding snow to fall directly onto this street, piling up to above shoe height. He pulled up a pile of it and scooped handfuls out here and there on the wide pavement, creating a makeshift bed. He knew it would be comfortable- he'd done it a million times. They crushed up against the wall, wanting to avoid any unsteady and booted feet walking past in the morning- everyone was on lockdown now for the blackout, but apparently there were no wardens around here telling people to get inside for the night. _

_Once the clouds cleared away- Jack had forced them to- him and Megan lay looking up at the stars. They flickered brightly, and he told her about all the constellations and what they were, having learnt about them on some of his travels. She seemed delighted to hear, and it was definitely a wise choice for him to stay with her. _

_Sleep began to gain a grip over Megan, however, and her head started to bob to the side. Jack noticed this and moved so that he was the one with his back to the road, further into the pavement and away from the wall. Unsure of what to do, he just lay there until she decided where she wanted to sleep- which was, apparently, in his arms. She shuffled over and slid herself into a backwards hug, so that his whole body acted as a bigger, guard one around hers. They tucked their knees in and Jack felt strange being this close to someone after so long alone, but for a strange reason it felt completely natural and safe. He didn't remember ever doing it before, but perhaps he had. The girl shivered again under his hold, so he made her take out her hat and put it on her head and do up her coat. _

_They both lay for a long time, awake- the Winter Spirit and the believer. Thoughts still rushed in and out of Jack's head, and he thought maybe this one thing he could do would cheer her up... It always seemed to make people laugh, anyway. He carefully made a delicate snowflake and sent it on it's way towards her nose, where she stared at it in joy before it burst and snowed a little on her face. She giggled uncontrollably, and so did Jack. The darkness seemed to get darker, but Megan wasn't scared when she was with Jack. He'd told her wonderful things- about the Easter Bunny and Father Christmas and the Man In The Moon and all these spirits he knew- well, "knew". They ignored him, and she didn't like that because he was fantastic. But the pull on sleep got harder to resist, and finally, she knew she had to say something. Anything. So she coughed up the courage to do it. _

_'Jack.' Megan said in barely a whisper, but he caught it. _

_'Yeah?' he replied, lifting his head. _

_The girl turned around onto her other side so that she was facing him, snuggling into his chest despite the biting coldness of it. 'You're my Guardian.' she said simply, and Jack took a sharp inhale. _

The Guardians themselves shook with a strange sensation._ "I'm not a Guardian." _Jack's recent words echoed back in their ears. He obviously was to someone.

_'You're mine.' Jack smiled at her dark blue eyes. 'You have no idea, Megan. What you've saved me from. I was so alone, and now I'm not. You've __**saved **__me.' he stopped himself from breaking down while lying in a snow bank in the street. _

_'Jack.' she said softly again, falling asleep. _

_'Yeah?'_

_'…I love you.' she only said the words because she was half asleep. She was barely aware that she'd said them. _

_Jack's heart stopped for at least a few seconds. She... she __**what?**__ He hadn't the slightest clue how to respond as his mind relished the words spoken by the adorable little six year old in front of him. But... in a strange way he felt the same. It was like she was family, and that feeling made warmth blossom through his very soul- something he had never experienced before. He swallowed heavily before responding. 'I... I love you too, Megan.'_

_He wasn't sure if she had even heard, because she was breathing steadily and heavily and her hold on him had gone loose. But he didn't care. _

_For the first time in a long, __**long**__ time, Jack Frost felt warm and tired. And so as simple as it sounded, he fell asleep next to his first ever believer, protecting her from the dangerous world around her. And he didn't feel lonely, or scared, or ignored. He felt believed in._

* * *

**Phew!**

And there we have it. Only one more Megan chapter to go! I hope you like her- I do, an awful lot :P She's so cute ^_^  
But yes, I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their reviews, follows and favourites, because I am currently jumping around every time I gain one! You guys are amazing. You really, really are, and I love you ;_; *screams and cries*  
Please continue the way we have been going- more R&R-ing and F&F-ing :D You know you want to... go on... press it...

Latsa love from your ever ecstatic author,

Emily! :3 I'm so tired... but you deserve this! A pretty quarter under all of your pillows tonight, specially from me.

_P.S_:_ for Megan Chapter 3- I am __sorry__. I am. I am apologizing in advance._


	45. Three Guardians and a Spirit of Winter

_The beautiful sleigh landed with a crash back onto the runway of the North Pole, and Tooth quickly flew out of it to see if there was still a portal that maybe Sandy had flown through just in the nick of time, but there was nothing. Now all that remained was a plain sky and the cold, and no Sandy. Everything came crashing down and she just balanced on the end of a flag hanging over the edge of the ramp, and it curved under her weight. _

The Guardians watched with sadness, all except Sandy, who wasn't completely aware of what was happening. He'd been filled in briefly on what had happened while he was "away", but never fully or properly. It seemed too painful for them, especially Bunny, so he had decided not to ask too many questions.

_Bunny stared out at Tooth and where the Snow Globe portal had shut them off from the hope that their fellow Guardian would be fine and smiling. Jack slid down his staff hopelessly and landed softly on the floor, hugging his legs tight to himself. He didn't dare look at anyone. North was finishing his safe landing of the sleigh and handing it over to a Yeti that had almost been run over. Bunny's anger and devastation at what had just happened burned up into his head, and he quickly kicked a barrel over with his powerful legs. He panted heavily and turned on the winter spirit. _

_'What were you __**bloody**__ thinking Jack?!' Bunny roared at the new member of the group sat so small in front of him. 'Trying to take on Pitch without us!'_

_Jack dared to glance up at the raging Guardian of Hope, his face twisted in regret and pain. _

_North had walked over now, stood behind Jack, but not too close- he knew how he needed his space. 'Keep it together Bunny.' he said calmly. _

_'Keep it together?!' Bunny exploded and shouted as loudly as he possibly could. 'Sandy's gone, he's __**GONE**__!'_

_'I know that.' North said solemnly, taking his hat off and staring at the ground. _

_'Pitch is picking us off one by one!' Bunny exclaimed again, the only one who really couldn't just be sad or calm down at least a little. 'And you want me to keep it __**TOGETHER**__?!'_

_'He's right.' Tooth suddenly joined in the conversation- argument, rather- and flew over to them. 'We're losing kids by the minute! Pitch's plan is actually working...' she gulped her panic down, and Bunny remained fiercely staring. _

_Jack looked wholly unamused by everything. His fists clenched tight around his staff, shaking slightly at his strength and threatening to explode into a snowstorm._

_North replaced his hat back onto his head and turned to the Guardian of Fun with a soft edge to his tone. 'Yes, but now, we have something he wasn't planning on.' he looked fondly down and placed his hand on Jack's shoulder. _

_Jack turned with despair on every crease of his face, but couldn't manage a smile. North... actually wanted him there. They weren't about to throw him out like he was nothing like so many people had done. Despite his mistake, they were forgiving him. So, he simply stared wide eyed at the bushy-bearded man in front of him. _

_'How did you do that, Jack?' Tooth repeated what she had said earlier, still not really accepting the whole situation. She flew closer and the teenager stood to his feet. _

_'I don't know.' Jack altered his response slightly, but he still meant the same thing. He wasn't aware he had that kind of power in him, and it scared him a little. _

_'Bonzer!' Bunny retorted only seconds later. 'He doesn't even know what he did!' _

_Tooth looked angrily at him. 'What he did was __**save**__ us.' she said firmly. _

_'Not all of us!' Bunny shouted back instantly, and Tooth flinched. He hastily snapped around to glare daggers at Jack. 'Not __**all **__of us.' _

_'Bunny __**ENOUGH**__!' North boomed so loudly they thought their eardrums would explode. All workers ceased their fiddly screwing and hammering to stare at their boss. An Elf who was walking towards them to bring them cookies, unaware of the dire situation, heard North's bass voice and backed away quickly. _

_'Now we are all upset.' he sighed and rubbed his eyes. 'But we can't turn on each other.'_

_'Sandy wouldn't want that.' Tooth said softly, the three Guardians all stood in a circle, Jack excluded. _

_'No, of course not.' Bunny sighed and looked down ashamedly, breathing out hot air from his nose. _

_'Sandy would want us to go on.' Tooth said with meaning. She looked hopefully at Bunny and then North. _

_'To fight.' the Russian said. _

_'To defeat Pitch.' Bunny added with a pained smile. _

Sandy himself struggled not to tear up at the words. He was touched by their devotion to him, and for mourning him so well- he was glad they hadn't been absolutely devastated and unable to do anything, as that's not what he had wanted.

_Jack watched with amazement. How could they react so well to a death? It made no sense to him, the way they all looked at each other and smiled, how they knew exactly what to say and how to comfort each other. Jack didn't understand any of it, but he had to say something. 'I think Sandy would want you to have this.' he walked out from the shadows and towards the three remaining Guardians, then pulled a small wooden box from his pocket and handed it to North. _

_Bunny and Tooth stared with gawking interest over North's shoulder as he opened the lid to reveal a pile of gold dust. _

_'Dream sand!?' Tooth said, amazed. _

_'Pitch didn't get it all.' Jack said with a slight smirk, but his eyebrows were still forcefully down with determination. _

_'Why you light fingered little larrikin.' Bunny jested as North looked down sadly. _

_'Oh, Sandy...' North's face crumpled with depression. Tooth held a hand to her heart and stared at the brilliant reflection shining off the golden dream sand. _

_'You keep it.' Jack said with a smile. _

_North shut the box and tucked it into his coat, then laid his palm firmly on Jack's shoulder again. They shared a warm look, and North was just about to speak when a Yeti burst through the double doors closest to them. It looked around for a second before its eyes found the Guardians. It babbled in Yetish worriedly. _

_'Just check ice flow.' North replied calmly but tiredly. _

_The Yeti suddenly realised. 'Blarga rahgun?' _

_North's head drooped low and he walked solemnly towards his worker, and the Yeti knew instantly what he meant. His eyes widened and he started to tear up, but all of the Guardians and Jack walked past him and through the doors without a word. He didn't move for at least a minute after that._

_They all descended the flights and flights of stairs and elevators in complete silence, numbed from what had just happened. All Yetis and Elves had heard the news and made sure to be especially quiet whenever the Guardians and Jack were on their floor of work. North spoke softly to one of them, asking them to let everyone off for today's work. Christmas was still months away, and he thought it best to give his workers a rest._

_'We should… prepare something.' Tooth suggested gently when they had all arrived back at the Globe Room. Some chairs had been pulled up around the fire, and the absence of one small one made their hearts nearly rip in two. 'Nothing big, just… something. He deserves something.'_

_'Yes, is true.' North collapsed into one of the comfortable armchairs, right next to the cosy heat of the flames, pinching the bridge of his nose. He took off his coat and hat and tossed them carelessly over the armrest as the others joined him. Jack stayed well away in the background. 'I will sort something out, I'm sure some Yetis and Elves who were close to him would like to come.'_

_'Sounds lovely, mate.' Bunny smiled comfortingly, understanding how close North and Sandy were._

_'Jack, would you like to come?' North poked his head around his backrest, looking at the boy stood in the shadows._

_'I…' Jack paused and sighed. 'I… No. No I wouldn't.' and with that he turned away from them and left. _

The Guardians followed him along corridors until he stopped in a small hallway, barely wide enough for a Yeti to fit through.

_Jack leant heavily against the wall behind him, starting to breathe quickly and shallowly, his eyes wide. He blinked away tears and his face scrunched in complete misery, so he rubbed away the soreness from his vision with his sleeve near the elbow. He groaned and flung himself back against the wall again, his spine flat and his head lifted as he slowed down his breathing. He slid down the wood behind him and tucked his legs in tight to himself, then screamed as loudly as he could into his knees so that nobody nearby would hear. _

His face was hidden to the Guardians, but it didn't really matter. They even felt a little bit wrong for seeing him in such a state- the reason he had left in the first place was so that he wouldn't be watched.

_Jack sat there for a long while just panting and hiccupping, attempting to calm himself down, but failing miserably. Occasionally his head lifted out of his knees and he allowed his face to be viewed. His eyes were sore and red, tears freely flowing from them, and his cheeks were blanched. Frost spread angrily around him and up the walls- not his usual pretty swirls and fern patterns, but sharp and jagged spikes. It wasn't normal for him to let his emotions overtake, but he was so confused about so many things._

_Jack didn't understand how he had performed such a powerful attack. It was sent with such force that it had briefly knocked him out cold from the exertion, so he wondered how he could possibly render himself unconscious. It wasn't a pleasant experience, and that was for sure. And Sandy… How could he even start on Sandy? He hadn't been fast enough, hadn't tried hard enough. If he had just pushed himself a little bit more, actually used the powers he had, he could have protected his new friend. He was just starting to feel… welcomed. He'd finally found people who cared at least a little about him, and then he'd managed to get one of them killed. It was his fault._

_Just like it had been his fault all those times before._

_And he wanted to scream because of it. He wanted to kill Pitch. He wanted to make him realise what he'd done to them and how he'd ruined everything. But he didn't. Jack wasn't a killer, and he couldn't bring himself to be as cruel as the Boogeyman, and so that train of thought ended there._

Sandy was touched that Jack cared so much. He was so emotional, even if he hid it, and for _him_ as well. But he focused, making sure he didn't go off track, and tried to search for the knife, but found nothing. He shook his head to the other Guardians, who understood, knowing this wasn't a good memory the second it had started.

_Jack Frost curled in more on himself, until he became aware of all the lights going out around the Pole. Everything was deathly silent- something Jack did not associate with the busy workshop, and it unnerved him. Pitch hadn't decided to attack again had he? He stood to his feet and walked silently back to the Globe Room, making sure his presence wasn't known to anyone._

_His eyes were met with the sight of Yetis and Elves and the three remaining Guardians gathering around the stone plaques that identified the four of them. Jack floated slowly and soundlessly to the ceiling, holding on to one of the rafters high above his head. He watched as everybody filed into neat circles around the plaques, lighting candles with their head bowed low. North grumbled sadly as they got into position- 'No Jack?'_

_Tooth shook her head and turned back to the candle she was being handed by one of the Yetis, who wore an easy expression on his features. She took it with a sorrowful smile, and the three Guardians stepped forward to put down their own candles. Tooth was the last to place one down, on the point of Sandy's triangle, and she flitted up to a hovering position once more. All of them just stared at the memorial as the bells from the Elves' jingling hats swayed back and forth in a harmonious rhythm. _

_First, Tooth looked to her right at North, holding his grave gaze for a few seconds before turning to Bunny on her left. They reached out their arms to meet hands, and Bunny's face furrowed with sobs he wouldn't let out. His eyes trembled and Tooth smiled at him weakly, attempting to keep him strong, as she knew he'd regret it later if he broke down. Then she and North joined palms, and they stood there for a long time while the mourning bells rang out behind them, spines curved hopelessly forward. _

_Some Yetis and Elves sniffled cautiously from the side-lines, not wanting to start full on crying fits. The soft lighting was beautiful as it fell on the sombre scene, hundreds of the little pointy hatted creatures stood on poles and banisters and balconies to be able to see, deep and longing sadness striking through all of them. It had been a long time since anything sad had happened, so this hit them hard. The Yeti behind Tooth wiped his eye gently on his fur, and his furry friend next to him patted his back in comfort. _

The memorial lasted perhaps another ten minutes, but the Guardians felt as if they couldn't see this again. They didn't want to remember the pain they'd felt that day. All except Sandy.

The Sandman floated gradually towards the scene, barely able to feel an emotion. They'd done all of this for him…? It was serene and gorgeous, and golden- gold and warm like his sand. He reached out a hand as if to touch his friends in front of him, but quickly remembered there was nothing he could do. He wanted to reassure them that everything was going to be alright, that they would see him again soon, and it pained him that he couldn't do so. After a minute of shallow breathing, he turned back to the real Toothiana, Bunnymund and North.

They looked into his little orange eyes lovingly to show their true emotions, and he felt overwhelmed, as if a huge wash of honey had just lapped up over him. He smiled weakly with a shudder at his lips at the horrifying ordeal they'd had to go through. But he was here now, and that was what was important, and he remembered that as he went over and hugged them all in a big circle. It was the most he felt he could do now, especially as the workers and Guardians below were dispersing.

_Jack suppressed any noise he was going to let out and made his way to a wide, three-panelled window only a small way away from the Globe. He sat on a half cabinet, half bench by them and pulled his knees in, though not as tightly this time, with his elbows rested on his kneecaps. He stared out with his hood pulled high over his snowy white head at the landscape beneath him, suddenly realising how horrible his snow and ice could look when you weren't in a pleasant mood. The sky was almost bare of any clouds, apart from a few smears of fluffy white that drifted across the cerulean expanse of nothingness. Right then, he hated his powers. He hated himself, more than anything. _

_He tapped his little finger on the glass delicately once, making the shape of Sandy with his arms lifted high in dream spreading joy in tiny swirls and vines. He'd hoped that nobody had seen him, but that idea had been crushed when North walked over slowly barely minutes afterwards. 'Are you alright?' the Russian asked tenderly, keeping his distance._

_'I just…' Jack sighed and drew his eyes to the glass itself in front of him. 'I wish I could have __**done**__ something.' His face scrunched in stifled anger._

_'__**Done**__ something?' North almost hazarded a laugh. 'Jack, you stood up to Pitch. You __**saved**__ us.' He leaned against the window and crossed his arms._

_'But Sandy…' Jack started, his head low and ashamed._

_'Would be proud of what you did.' North finished._

_Jack allowed himself to look up into the man's eyes, despite the overwhelming knot in his stomach that told him to just start crying. He pulled his hood back and hopped in a sprightly manner to his feet, shoving his hands into his pockets as a compromise for showing his head._

_'I don't know who you were in your past life, but in this life-' North continued, pulling Jack caringly to face him by his left shoulder, '-you __**are**__ Guardian.'_

_Jack looked emotionally and confused up at the Christmassy man in front of him. 'How can I know who I __**am**__… until I find out who I __**was**__.' he said, so quietly, it was barely audible._

_'You will.' North reassured. 'I feel it.' he pointed at Jack's face with a fat finger. 'In my belly.' He leaned over, and Jack dared to let a smile find its way to his damaged face, and then the memory finished._

* * *

You guys. I don't even know where to start apologising for how late this is. I am so, _so_ sorry.

I've just started all my ballet lessons again, and I'm tired and I have homework and school and so many... I dunno, _things_! But yeah, enough of that, I won't be surprised if you never forgive me.

This chapter actually has three elements to it- first, the landing section, which I actually took all the dialogue and idea from a deleted scene. It was story boarded, but never included in the movie, so I thought it would be nice to sort of add it in. You can find it on YouTube if you just type in 'Rise Of The Guardians Deleted Scenes', and it's pretty easy to spot. Obviously, as it's only in sketchy drawings, I added about facial features and a couple of extra things, but essentially, it is much the same.  
The second section is when Jack was upset and on his own, which I completely made up myself.  
The third, is (as I'm sure you can tell) from the movie itself, so there's not much elaboration to be made on that. :3

Anyway, please keep reading, reviewing, following and favouriting- I am still absolutely gobsmacked at all the wonderful, positive attention this is getting, and I can't really believe how quickly you guys latched onto my writing. It's just... woah. I love you all. Your R&Rs and F&Fs keep me wanting to write and write until my hands bleed! ;) I actually wrote a bit in maths class today I was so bored, haha :P I really hate my teacher...

YEAH I'LL SHUT UP AND TRY TO UPDATE WAAAAY QUICKER!

Love from,  
Emily xxxx You all get any object you want from the film, pick one, and you can have it. My treat :D

(P.S: I told you I'd be useless at updating)


	46. Trauma

_'Jack, listen to me.' Emma said softly, but her tone was filled with deep and painful sadness. 'You have to listen to me.'_

_Jack sat blankly on a wooden chair in his family home, and his eyes were devoid of any emotion other than emptiness. He looked perhaps a year younger than he did as a winter spirit, so he was maybe thirteen years old? His hair fell over his forehead in singed clumps, messy and dry. _

_The room was small and contained a single cupboard with drawers below, holding various chipped plates, wooden bowls and other utensils. This was the kitchen. It had wooden walls with bits and bobs hanging from pegs or on small, wooden racks piled up. There was a large fireplace with a metal spit over it, from which hooks hung to keep a pan or pot over the flames. There was a single table and a few wooden buckets, along with a couple of stools and a couple of chairs. It was very simple, really, but it was dark now, so candles had been lit. Only two in this whole room were- they couldn't afford to burn away any more. They'd accidentally let the fire go out, only the hot embers of the woods hissing as they died away into wisps of delicate smoke, as normally the fire would never be put out. One of them should have raked the fire and covered it, so that the heat would stay in to be lit again in the morning, but right now neither of them cared. Nothing about the house mattered right now._

_Jack was somewhere else, thinking of another time, lost to this world. The embers crackled in the fireplace, becoming deafeningly loud amongst the silence of this situation. The floorboards creaked upstairs and gentle sobbing could be heard seeping through the cracks. Emma sat in front of her son, one hand placed tenderly on his shoulder, and the sheer exhaustion on her face sent chills down the Guardians' spines. This was not the joyful and free-spirited mother they had briefly grown to know. Her eyes were puffy and bloodshot, giving away how long she had been crying for, and her hair and clothes were a mess. The house itself felt hollow._

_'Jack.' She desperately tried to gain her child's attention, but he couldn't take anything in. Blocking out the world was the easiest thing to do. Becoming numb and shutting off his emotions was all he could think to do, all he could ever imagine doing._

_They sat there for a long time, very still, with the occasional padding of feet upstairs. Emma lifted her hand off Jack's shoulder and lay it against his cheek. She forced a smile onto her face with tears brimming in her deep brown eyes, and her lip trembled as she spoke. 'My sweet little boy.' Her eyebrows curved in an uncertain half-smile, half-frown as she attempted to hold back the urge to cry for hours without stopping. She could hardly bear to look at her son like this. 'Please, Jack, look at me.'_

_Jack's eyes slowly lifted off the floor to meet hers, but neither of them wanted to see what was hidden in their dark pupils. His face remained just as blank, as if he wasn't really seeing, as if he had to really focus to be able to look at his own mother._

_'This is __**not**__ your fault.' Emma grew firm and gave Jack a solid look. She twiddled a lock of his chestnut fringe in her fingers and dared to show a small smile. 'Don't you ever think this is your fault.'_

'What _happened_?' Tooth shuddered at this grim scene. They obviously hadn't had the memories that fell before this one.

'Not anything good.' Bunny didn't meet her gaze.

_'But it…' Jack mumbled. 'It __**was**__. It was m-my fault. I could have done… done __**something**__.' he drew his face down towards the ground again. 'It was-'_

_'No, Jack.' Emma held his face tighter in her hand and made him look at her. 'No. Never, __**ever**__ think that. It was an accident. A stupid, stupid accident.'_

_'But Lily…' his eyebrows trembled in concern._

_'Is grieving.' Emma finished his sentence, though not in the way he was going to. 'She's going to look for anything and anyone to blame. You're her first target.'_

_'I don't think she'll ever l-look at me in the same way again.' Jack sighed heavily and pushed his face further into his mother's warm hand. It was comforting. 'I don't think I can ever look at her again.'_

_'Jack.' Emma repeated, constantly trying to hold his meandering attention. 'This. Is. __**Not**__. Your. Fault.'_

_'No.' Jack replied meekly. 'It's not. But you can't deny that I could have done something about it.'_

_'You did your best.' Emma stared at him._

_'He'd be ashamed-' Jack started with a crack in his voice. _

_'No, he'd be proud.' Emma let a tear sorely roll down her cheek. 'He was always proud of you.'_

_Jack let a painful smile etch its way onto his exhausted features. The bags under his eyes betrayed his weariness, and a dull thud could be heard from above. It was Lily collapsing onto her bed- they'd heard it enough times to know, and they were pleased she was finally going to get some rest. She needed it after the screaming fit she had had earlier- and so did Jack, having experienced the brunt of his sister's anger. Emma had watched on helplessly, desperately trying to rip her daughter away from the beating she was giving her brother, but Lily's strength was fuelled by her emotion, whereas Emma's was sapped._

_Jack simply stood and took it, not able to feel the blind punches and slaps that were being thrown at him. He was numbed to the core, never having experienced a feeling like this. He didn't care. Lily could've beaten him to death and he wouldn't have cared. She had finally stopped when a bruise had risen on his cheek and his lip had smudged with crimson blood. It was only then that she really __**saw**__ her brother and the state that he was in- minor burns ran up his arms and legs, and it was as if she could still see the flames licking at his tender skin while he protected her._

_Still, he didn't seem even slightly affected by his injuries, and that scared both his mother and sister. His eyes emptied and didn't dare to meet hers, staring blankly at a point just past her hip- he looked like he could keel over at any moment. _

_Lily had run off upstairs after that, unable to be in the same room as her family. She had been sobbing then changing to shouting rapidly over the past hour, something that was hard to ignore._

_Jack had started to sway on his feet then, and Emma quickly swooped in and caught him before he collided with the floor. She'd led him to the chair he was currently sat in, wiped his split lip and run what cool water they had over his sore, red skin. He reckoned that she could spread alcohol, lemon and salt all mixed into one onto his abrasions, and he still wouldn't feel it. Not until tomorrow, anyway._

'Sandy?' North asked sadly, hoping that they would have to find the dagger in this memory, not only to distract them from the painful scene, but also to prove that this wasn't a horrible memory.

Sandy shook his head with a sympathetic smile on his face, understanding the others' distress.

_A single tear escaped Jack's left eye, trickling steadily down his pale cheek, every line and shape of his face weighed down by exhaustion and regret. He kept his mother's gaze for several minutes, a new droplet cascading from his bloodshot eyes until his cheeks were wet and they dripped off his chin and into his lap. But he still didn't sob or cry- his breaths were firm and shallow, and his expression betrayed no emotions. No emotions but blank shock. In fact… he wasn't emotionless. He was traumatised._

The Guardians couldn't move when they realised. Jack must have seen something horrible that day for him to be so disconnected and shocked. The world around him seemed not to process in his mind, as if the cogs that kept him thinking straight were jammed and broken. It was horrifying. For him to be so… hopeless. And Bunny didn't visit him, either- he would remember. None of them visited.

_'He loved you two more than anything.' Emma offered more support, but Jack had just about had enough. He couldn't deal with anything. At the same time as wanting to lie down and sleep for a week, he didn't feel like he could ever close his eyes. He was terrified that if he did, all he would see was heat and blinding yellow. _

_Jack started to tremble, on and off for a couple of minutes before it became a steady shake. He was shivering and gasping in breaths- but why? He was just sat at a table. Emma quickly threw herself up the stairs, leaving her son behind on his own. He continued to gulp in air deep and fast and only just managed to stop himself from falling off his seat. Cold sweat stuck his brown fringe to his forehead, a line dripping down his face._

This sudden attack of hyperventilation was extremely unnerving for the Guardians. The scary thing was that Jack didn't look in pain or discomfort. He looked like a tired young teenager, pale and exhausted, but not injured. And that was what frightened them.

'Sweet tooth, what's wrong with him?' Tooth squealed, sick of seeing Jack suffering from something day in and day out. 'He's not hurt, is he? He's fine! What's happening?'

'He's in shock.' Bunny stated simply.

'_What?'_ North questioned. 'Why?'

'Don't ask me!' Bunny lifted his hands in retaliation. 'He went through something this day that I don't think anyone would want to see.'

_'Oh…'_ Tooth just managed to stop herself from swearing. 'Maybe he's just having a panic attack? Maybe he had asthma? Bunny_, please_, surely it's because of something else!?'

'Tooth, it's not.' Bunny sighed and rested a hand on her shoulder. 'Look- he's flushed, sweating, breathing heavily. His heart rate's up, I'm sure, and he was dazed before. He was out of it completely and losing his balance. They're all symptoms.'

'Are you sure?' North asked.

'Pretty certain.' Bunny replied, running his paw across one of his ears. 'He ain't clowning around this time.'

_Jack fell to the floor, one hand pulled up to his throat, the other keeping him off the ground. _This elicited a step forward by all of the Guardians, who quickly remembered that they could do nothing.

'There's only one thing that makes me doubt what it is…' Bunny mumbled, but before anyone could ask what he meant, the front door opened gently.

_'Jack…?' Roger stood in the darkened doorway, years older than when the Guardians had seen him in that other memory. His blonde hair ruffled longer around his head than it used to, and he was just as firmly built. He practically bolted into the room, slamming the door shut behind him._

_'Jack?' Roger repeated himself, much louder this time. He knelt down next to the boy, looking at him and checking him for any injuries. He was clear._

_'Roger?' Emma said as she came rushing down the stairs, a blanket in her strong hands. 'What are you doing here?'_

_'What do you think?' Roger replied grimly. 'But not now- what's happened?' he gestured towards Jack, who then fell forwards just slow enough for the man he had known for his whole life to catch him and keep him there. _

_'Not taking it well.' Emma almost shouted she was so panicked. 'He did the same when they found him, when I got to him, but not this badly.'_

_'He's shaken up bad, Em.' Roger said sharply and quietly, hoping the teenager wouldn't hear him. From the situation, it was obvious that he had._

_Jack's breaths caught, hitched, and reverberated in his ribcage, uncomfortable and uncontrollable. He coughed a few times._

_'Get the throw over him, around his shoulders.' Roger instructed solidly. Emma did as she was told, then helped to lift her shaking child up and sit him against a wall. They pushed a few pillows around him and under him, helping him to sit straight and firm._

_'Jack?' Lily's soft voice sounded afraid and concerned. She was stood on the last step of the stairs, limply watching what was happening in front of her. 'Ma, what's wr-wrong with him?'_

_'Lily, he's afraid. What he saw today- he wants to forget it, he doesn't like it, so his body is doing this to try and stop all those horrible feelings.' Roger explained calmly. 'Thing is, it only makes the feelings worse, so we just have to sit with him until it ends. Alright?'_

_Lily felt a bit queasy looking at her brother like this. 'Alright.' She said very quietly, stepping off the last stair. Guilt made a huge lump rise up in her throat as she thought about this- what if this was because of her? What if he was like this because she had been so angry? What if he was dying? Her thoughts ran away with her, and she almost felt like doing the same as her brother- collapsing and hyperventilating. Her eyes flicked around the three faces in the dim light, tears blurring everything. _

_Jack was sat with his knees up, his back against the wall, Emma and Roger holding one of his tense hands each. Things didn't seem to be calming down, either. He was just as stressed and panicked as he had been minutes beforehand, his whole body hot and feverish. In his mind, all he could do was relive the day's events._

And so that's what the Guardians saw.

_Heat started to mingle in with the cool breezes running through the house- how could it possibly be warm? Then it grew in intensity. The room became like a furnace, and everything started to blur and change colour. The walls lit up and flickered deep red and yellow, a few items scattered around either charred and black or being tickled by flames._

'What the _hell_ is happening?!' Tooth almost screamed, this time not able to keep her words to herself. She folded her wings in to avoid the fires that randomly started around them, flitting nervously on her feet to look for a cause.

'Crikey!' Bunny shook his head grimly. 'He's definitely in shock, Tooth! He's hallucinating- reliving whatever he saw. A fire, obviously!'

'Fire?' North said calmly. _'Fire!'_ he exclaimed, feeling a scorching flame light up beneath his feet and jumping away from it.

They could still see, however, and everything seemed normal. Everything apart from Jack._ He was pushing his head against the wall as much as he could, keeping as far away from the fires as was possible without moving to the flaming doorway. His eyes were wide and his eyelids fluttered erratically in his panic, and he was trying to say something, but nothing came out._

_Roger and Emma's mouths moved as if they were talking, but all that could be heard was the deafening crackling of wood burning. It sounded as if the roof was caving in, crashing to the ground and snapping on impact. Jack coughed at imaginary smoke, staring at the two adults in front of him to try and warn them to get out, to leave, only with his eyes. His mouth wouldn't work, so he just ended up opening and closing it like a fish out of water. _

_His terror rose and rose along with the fires around him, scalding the Guardians, but just as quickly as it appeared, everything was gone. The fire was gone, and he saw the room how it really was. What had brought him out of it was the sight of his sister stood painfully still a few metres away from him, staring wide-eyed. _

_Lily looked absolutely terrified. Jack had been throwing himself around and breathing so hard it was almost as if he was going to stop inhaling at any second. He was pale, exhausted, and sweating all across his face and neck, trickles of the cold salty water running down his back. She didn't know how to help, and she regretted everything she had accused him of earlier. She started crying silently, distantly, just like he had been doing earlier. _

_Seeing this, Jack was brought back into reality. He took one huge gasp for air which settled him down a little, then looked tiredly at his sister, noticing how her fists gripped onto her nightwear as if her life depended on it. 'Lily…?' he managed to gasp out, loosening his hold on the two adults either side of him. They exchanged a relieved glance with each other, glad that he had finished flipping out. It wasn't fun. _

_Lily stepped forward slowly and cautiously towards her brother. He didn't look like himself, and it unnerved her, but she pushed the doubt down. She closed the last bit of distance between them and fell into a welcome hug. Jack pulled her close to himself, lowering his breathing and his heart rate just by holding her and being able to smell her distinct scent. It was calming and soothing, a sensation he had known since he was very young. _

_'I'm sor-sorry, Jack!' Lily whimpered into his chest, able to feel his heart explode out of his body every time it beat. 'I didn't mean it…'_

_'Hey, hey, it's okay, it's okay!' Jack said tiredly, letting her go. 'I'm okay. There's nothing to be sorry for.' She noticed his split lip and bruised cheek and disagreed with him internally. 'Get some sleep, alright?'_

_'Yeah…' Lily wiped her eyes and looked up at her now calmer brother, the first smile_ _he had pulled today - the first expression of any emotion other than fear- worn simply on his features. It was weak, but it was there. She got up and Roger took her by the hand, leading her back upstairs._

_After Emma had exchanged some soft words, she helped her weakened son up the steps and into his bed, too, positioned next to his sister's. He collapsed down onto it limply, and Roger came over to speak to him._

_'Hey, Jack, ya feelin' better?' he asked, stroking some of his fringe away. The teenager would have shoved the man's hand away and frowned at him if he had cared at all. He was too numb and exhausted to even think about being his usual self. 'I'll take that as a yes.' Roger continued. 'Look, you were in shock, in case you were wondering. You'll be alright, it shouldn't happen again. Just get some rest, kiddo.'_

_'Thank you, Rodge.' Jack smiled faintly in his bed as the man pulled the covers over him, a pained expression on his face as he looked down at the two broken children in front of him. Things wouldn't ever be the same for them or for Emma, and he knew it, but that was life. Cruel and twisted. He couldn't help the knot that twisted sickeningly in his stomach at his own feelings, so he swiftly left the children in peace. His footsteps creaked on the stairs, and as Jack fell into deep sleep, muffled sobs and voices could be heard from downstairs. He ignored them, preferring to pretend that they weren't real, that his mother and her lifelong friend hadn't just openly cried with each other. _

_So he went to sleep._

* * *

**_A/N_**

*Sigh* Looks like this is becoming a once a week updated story. Sorry. So sorry. :( Always sorry when I'm late.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter (well, "enjoyed")- I'm sure you can guess what happened, and don't worry it will be explored further. :) PLEASE keep reviewing- I absolutely love them. I really do. I adore them. So so so so much. I guess you are all aware that I reply to your reviews in Chapter 30? I have told you on several occasions, but not one person has let me know that they're aware of the replies O.o Whether you're a guest or not, you'll be on there :D  
Will y'all let me know if I'm doing something wrong, or if there are any typos? Generally I'm pretty good at checking and editing, but I'm quite paranoid about it, so it would always be nice to know. I know some authors put up what music they listen to when they write, or what they think readers should listen to while they read. Hmm, well, I can't really suggest anything for you to listen to as it totally depends on the chapters, but I can tell you that while I write I listen to soundtracks. Of course, I listen to the ROTG soundtrack, but also How To Train Your Dragon and various little snippets (like Zelda, Professor Layton, Lord Of The Rings, bit of Tchaikovsky ballet, a couple of Tangled ones). Just in case you were interested :)

Also, I got a (sorta) main part in my school play, Alice In Wonderland! I'm in the girl group of singers, so that will make me even busier, but I'm still excited! And T.W got Alice! AHHH SO EXCITING! WELL DONE T WHENEVER, IF YOU EVER, GET TO HERE, THE PLAY WILL PROBABLY BE OVER BUT WHAT THE HECK YAAAY!

Love from, your longest A/N author,

Emily :) xxx


	47. Messing With Memories

Another long one- more tea for you!

* * *

_'Jack?' Lily's voice resonated loud and clear in the newly settled memory, but she was nowhere in sight._

_Jack Frost was alone in the darkness of this place, searching everywhere he possibly could for the source of his sister's questioning, but found nothing. He was alone, and scared._

_'Jack?' she called out again, starting to sound afraid. His panting grew louder in the blackness that surrounded him._

_'Jack!' Lily cried this time. 'Why did you leave me, Jack?' she whimpered._

The Guardians were at a loss. Whatever was happening, it wasn't good. But currently, none of them had _any_ idea what kind of memory this was. Sandy couldn't sense the dagger, either.

_'Why did you never visit, Jack?' Lily sobbed again._

_Jack was finally visible. He looked very much like the Jack that they knew- blue hoodie, white hair, blue eyes, staff in hand, but very tired as well. He looked afraid and exhausted- not a look the Guardians currently fancied on him._

**_'Lily?!'_**_ Jack called out, searching all around him, desperation weaving into his husky voice. It sounded like he'd been eating gravel. 'Lily where are you?!'_

_'Jack?' Lily only repeated, seemingly not having heard her brother. Finally, she appeared- she was stood by a lake, the summer leaves flapping in the treetops sounding like rain. The sun beat down hard and fierce, reflecting off the water's surface and shimmering into the depths of the still pool- it was a lot deeper than many people realised. A light breeze rustled in the hedges and a rabbit bounded across the brush by the side of the gentle water, stopping only briefly to lap at the cool liquid._

_Lily was stood on a pebbly shore, staring blankly out at the water. Her dress was tattered, she looked worked and thin and dangerously unhealthy. Tears started to fall down her face, but she didn't sob. She wore exactly the same expression Jack did when he was traumatised in his home, and it only made the whole situation more unnerving._

_'Jack...' she called out breathlessly. 'Jack... Come back... Don't leave me... I can't live without you.'_

_'Lily, I'm right here, don't worry!' Jack said with false confidence, but she didn't hear him. 'I never left you!'_

_'Why did you leave...?' she asked again._

_'Because...' Jack sighed tiredly. 'Because I had to, Lil, I had to. I had to save you. I had to... I couldn't watch you fall...' he despaired._

_'Jack, you never returned.' she turned harsh and cold._

_'I couldn't...' Jack started with difficulty. 'I didn't... didn't remember, Lily. I didn't know who you were, I didn't know you existed. I didn't know __**I**__ existed. But I'm here now, isn't that enough?'_

_'Jack...' Lily said again, broken. 'It's too late. You're too late. You failed me. I loved you and you left me. I forgot about you, Jack. I left you behind, and you became just an echo of the past. It's your fault we're gone.'_

_'No...' Jack shook with guilt and disbelief. 'No, stay here. We'll play and have fun just like we used to! You're not gone!'_

_'I don't want to die, Jack.' Lily's final words cut through Jack's heart with ice cold ferocity._ The Guardians shuddered.

_'You're __**not**__ going to die.' Jack said forcefully, wishing he could believe it._

_'You __**let**__ me die.' Lily continued her shaming. 'You killed me, Jack. This is your fault.'_

_A huge nightmare appeared behind her, forcing its sand gently against her back. As it did, she let it push her, and she fell forwards into the lake in front of her._

**_'Lily!'_**_ Jack called out in worry, but as much as he tried to reach her, he couldn't. It felt like he was walking through honey or trying to run forwards on a treadmill. He couldn't reach her before she disappeared down into the dark waters, the sky suddenly turning black and threatening. The clouds were thick with water as it almost instantly started to pelt down blinding and driving rain. __**'Lily, no!'**_

_But it was too late._

_Lily's body floated face down in the murky waters, the rain splashing in pools onto the surface creating tiny ripples. The water slowly changed colour, now red and thick- like blood. Lily disappeared beneath it and never arose, not struggling or fighting. She was dead._

_'No...' Jack whispered weakly._

_The leaves on the trees started to fall and the branches withered. Everything was dying. Flowers- Lilies- by the side of the trees wilted as if hit by long exposure to sunlight. The blood red lake bubbled and boiled fiercely like lava, spluttering out hot liquid all over the surrounding shores._

'What the **_dingo?!_**' Bunny almost squealed.

'I have no idea!' North shouted over the sounds of the gushing pool and pelting rain.

Tooth had her suspicions, but she didn't want to voice her thoughts until they were confirmed.

Sandy made a set of frantic images of the knife, Pitch, Jack, his sister and an erupting volcano. He created a huge cross and flashed it bigger and bigger, a panicked expression plastered onto his small, plump and golden face.

'Very bad memory!' Tooth screeched in her _I'm-in-charge_ voice as Jack leaned away and backed up from the scene. 'Very, _very_ bad, impossible memory! Let's move!'

_The darkness now seemed delicate and inviting to Jack._ The Guardians followed him away from the lake and all sound and light disappeared. All they could hear was Jack's frightened panting, then a thud and grunt as he tripped onto his front hard in the blackness.

_It was cold underneath Jack's chest- the ground was smooth and wet, and he realised he'd landed on solid stone. He groaned and rose slowly to his feet, ignoring the strangely painful bruising that blossomed across his front and deep into his lungs. He didn't usually hurt so easily._

_'Hello?' he called out and clung to himself in the darkness. 'Hello?!' he shouted, more desperate this time._

_'Jackson?' Emma asked, her voice timid and tinged with worry. 'What's wrong with your eyes, Jack?'_

_'Mom?' Jack responded, disconnected from the world he was wandering around in. 'My eyes...?'_

_'Jackson, can you...' Andrew paused. 'Are you...?'_

_'Dad, I can't see!' Jack said hysterically, blindly reaching out for the comforting arms of his parents. They never came. 'I can't see! Mom, dad, __**I can't see!**__'_

_'I know, Jackson, I kn-' Andrew started, but his voice was cut uncomfortably short._

_'Andrew?' Emma sobbed out the words. 'Andy?'_

_'Mom, what's happening?!' Jack stretched for her again, but she wasn't there. 'Mom, please, I can't see! Tell me what's happening!'_

_'Your father and siste-' Emma started again, but she too was cut off by her own churning scream. It was muffled and high and his father's was there too, low and deep- a chorus of pitch._

Pitch.

**_'MOM! DAD! LILY?!'_**_ Jack screamed as loudly as his voice would possibly let him and the Guardians covered their ears._

_A light flickered delicately in the distance. No… light flickered _off_ something in the distance. A blur of blue and green twisted and fluttered through the air, the constant humming of tiny wings beating together luring the boy in. Baby Tooth chirped dully ahead of him, and he followed without question. When she went so far that he could no longer keep up, Jack called for her and turned to look around him, but when he twisted to look cautiously back at where he had come from he was stunned._

_Bright white scorched tired eyes. Snow was settled heavily on the floor of a funeral parade, people walking sullenly and with hidden faces behind black veils and hats. They paced with such exact timing and fluidity it was almost like a dance. Together, they all held up three coffins high over their shoulders until they reached matching holes in the ground. The clouds above were thick with snow, seemingly closer to earth than usual now they were so heavy with moisture. The eerie silence of the whole scene pushed Jack to move forwards, despite the mantra that repeatedly played in his head telling him _don't go there_._

_Slowly, each box was lowered into the ground, and Jack could only watch with horror. The man at the front of the cluster of people stood up tall and breathed in heavily, before he started to speak and his hat fell away from his head without him having to lay a hand on it._

_'Today we are gathered to say our final farewells to the three lives we lost so cruelly.' Pitch certainly sounded the part, but Jack didn't seem to be able to react. 'Here we lay to rest Andrew Daniel Frost, his loving wife, Emma Elizabeth Frost, and their beloved child, Lily Elsa Frost.'_

The Guardians shuddered.

_Jack shook._

_The ground quaked before settling again._

_'Lost to the very element of their surname, the Frost family were loved and cherished as wonderful friends and neighbours.' Pitch continued with his horrifying speech, all five Guardians numb. 'The blizzard that blasted our village that fateful night two days ago destroyed what was left of their family- and just after recovering from the death of their son, Jackson.'_

_A few hisses and pained cries exploded from the audience at the Winter Spirit's name- a _'good riddance_' was caught by all as it echoed around the still graveyard._

_Jack started to hyperventilate._

The Guardians stood, mouths wide, breaths barely entering their lungs. A million questions swarmed their minds. Why was Pitch here? Did Jack _kill_ his family? Why did people hate him? Jack wasn't dead...?

Tooth felt it was time to speak up, having seen enough, but words wouldn't escape her rouged lips.

_'Jackson- where to start?' Pitch's real personality finally trickled through as he stood in front of the masked people. 'A pain, a constant bother to his family, a burden, a nuisance, an immature little boy, a thief... All things we know he was. And how cruel that the Frost family would be taken only weeks after his death- we __**all **__know how much happier they were with him gone.'_

_A chorus of cheers and whoops were flung from the audience heartily._

_'But now they are dead, taken from their finally happy household by a snowstorm.' Pitch almost smiled. 'All four of them, killed off by cold. Ironic, isn't it?'_

_Laughs shook the freezing earth beneath Jack's feet as he crumpled to it._

_'Cold and dark...' Pitch trailed a grey finger over a headstone playfully. 'What goes together better? And I bet they died alone and afraid... Separated in that storm that seemed just too set on killing the Frost family... It was almost as if it was made __**just**__ for them.'_

_Jack started shouting frantically. He was reduced to no more than a broken heap on the floor, screaming at the injustice of the words._

_'NO!' he cried. 'I DIDN'T MEAN TO, THEY KNOW I DIDN'T! I COULDN'T CONTROL IT! IT'S NOT MY FAULT...' he heaved in air that didn't seem to help his breathlessness._

_'Oh, but it's always your fault, Jack.' Pitch grinned devilishly. 'You control the snow, don't you?'_

_To this, the teenager did not respond. He quietly pulled his knees to his chest in a weak attempt to hide himself._

_'Alone and afraid...' Pitch teased, watching the Winter Spirit visibly squirm on the ground. 'Alone and afraid... The moon won't help them, Jack. You know that. Just like he never helped you... Alone and afraid...' It was like a cruel song._

_'I never wanted this...' Jack quivered. 'Never...'_

_'No, but you still made it happen.' Pitch walked ever closer, the crowd now splitting to let him through. 'It's still your fault. You killed them. You alone. Very alone, all alone, forever. The pathetic little thing that you are, Jack. You could have been so much more...'_

_Jack, despite his obvious inner turmoil, stood to his shaking legs with an angered expression smacked across his face. 'Never.' he spat._

_'Not even if I offered again?' Pitch asked timidly. 'Join me, Jack...'_

_'Never.' Jack repeated._

_Pitch looked momentarily hurt, but they knew it was false. 'Ah well, too bad. You're missing out!' he chuckled to himself. 'Be alone forever, fine by me!'_

_'I'm not alone, not anymore.' Jack retorted._

_'Oh, the Guardians?' Pitch laughed silently. 'Yes, what a family they are. They care about you __**so**__ much.' he said sarcastically._

_'They do.' Jack's jaw tightened and he clenched his hand around a staff that had never appeared in this memory._

_'You really think so?' Pitch stopped smiling and started looking interested in what the boy thought. 'Even after, what, three hundred years of ignoring you, you think they'll just turn it all around and love you? They don't even __**like**__ you, let alone __**love**__ you.'_

The Guardians fumed. They knew with all of their hearts that they loved Jack, even Bunny. They were a family.

_'That's not true...' Jack said a little too softly._

_'See, you don't even believe it yourself!' Pitch cackled. 'They never cared, not until their precious Man In The Moon chose you, Jack. Don't tell me you've never thought the same.'_

Jack's silence said it all.

_'See?' Pitch lifted a hand and gestured to the ashamed Guardian. 'They don't deserve you, Jack. They never cared, and they still don't. You don't even have a plaque on their Guardian circle! Remember how they rejected you at Easter? How they wouldn't even listen to what you had to say? Because it was my fault, I take full responsibility for dragging you to my lair and holding you there so my nightmares could do their work. But they wouldn't listen, would they? Bunny... do you remember how he shouted at you? He told you that they never should have trusted you. How about the way that North and Toothiana looked away from you, gave up on you? How they all stopped trusting you? They still don't, not to this day.'_

_'Argh! Stop it! __**STOP IT!**__' Jack shouted gruffly, holding his ears and shaking his head to deny all the accusations being thrown at him._

_'The only reason you're doing that is because you __**know**__ it's true.' Pitch softened. 'You just wanted someone to see you, to know your name and to believe in you. But none of the Guardians even bothered to tell you the basics- why you're invisible, why you're here, what you're here to do. Not even the Man In The Moon. Remember how he ignored you, Jack? How you asked him questions every night, and he never once replied? And then your memories.'_

_Jack's shoulders hunched in on themselves._

_'If the Tooth Fairy had taken just one minute to say hello and ask if you were alright, maybe she would have found out that you didn't remember your past. And then you would have been able to see them, Jack. Your family. You would have known who they were and could have visited them. You could have watched them and cared for them, but instead, you killed them because you didn't know they were your own blood.'_

The Guardians turned hot with rage, and knowing they could do nothing only made it worse. Tooth felt horrible- she'd never even thought about it like that. They really had all ignored him.

_'And Sandy...' Pitch just didn't stop. 'He gave his life for your pathetic one, Jack. The oldest Guardian, many times your age, gave his life for you. Do you think you deserved it? After everything you've done? Bunny shouted at you after that, too. The Easter Bunny you've grown to love as a brother blamed you for the Sandman's death.'_

_Jack flinched at the word "brother" and grounded himself firmly._ Bunny did the same.

_'Toothiana... Her fairies were kidnapped while you sauntered around the Pole. The teeth were stolen, too.' he missed out the fact that he had done the taking. 'And North... you nearly ripped his Workshop to bits. You still do, don't you? Causing nuisance and freezing elves. All four of them weak and broken after Easter, oh no, minus Sandy. Don't forget he was dead. And guess what the common feature was?' he paused to take a breath. __**'You.'**_

_'There's nothing I can do to make it right.' Jack said quietly in defeat. The ever bouncy rhythm to his voice was gone._

_'You could have joined me, Jack.' Pitch started to walk back through the crowds of veiled people. 'You could have been so much more. But that offer's gone now. Gone with everything you ever loved.'_

_'I still have the Guardians, and Jamie and Sophie and their friends.' Jack put up his last defences._

_'I wouldn't be so sure...' Pitch clasped his hands behind his back._

_Jack took a moment. 'What did you do...?' he asked weakly._

_'More to the point, Jack, what did __**you**__ do?' Pitch continued to walk. 'Oh, it's a repeat of Easter! How lovely!'_

_Pitch went back to his high ground where he had made his speech and turned back to the quiet people. One suddenly pulled off his mask to reveal a fat cigar in his mouth, tickets and papers all around him._

_'I'll take the girl for a hundred!' he shouted with a rusty American accent while flicking through his files._

_Another man joined him in the bargaining, and it quickly became an auction in the cemetery- everyone there suddenly changed into different clothes and different body shapes. They shoved each other around while the calls for the highest bid grew louder and louder. Finally, Pitch called out and pointed to the first man in the audience._

_'Sold for five hundred and sixty three dollars! Bring her out! Off to the circus we go little fairy!' he did a little victory dance._

_A cage was unexpectedly at his side, and inside it's bent bars was the shape of a ruffled Tooth Fairy, shackled and tired. She peered up and straight at Jack, tears filling her eyes, and her feathers looked dirty and broken. Her wings were bent awkwardly and she looked simply exhausted, the chains she'd once been fighting against now lying limply across her lap._

The Guardians gasped and Tooth could barely look at the horrible image of herself.

_'Jack...' she said hoarsely while being tugged out of the cage she was held in roughly._

_'Tooth...' Jack managed, but it was lost to the crowds of shouting people. 'I'm... I'm sorry...'_

_'Sorry's not good enough.' Tooth said weakly. 'This is your fault.' and with that, she turned her eyes away and was led away by the greasy looking man until she was gone._

_Jack was vaguely aware of more bids being placed in front of him, but he didn't concentrate on any of it. The voices were like little hums at the back of his mind as he thought about the sting of Tooth's words._

_It was only when Pitch once again shouted 'sold!' that he was back in reality. This time, the cell that was pulled out contained a dull coloured Sandman with nightmare sand cuffs around his hands. His golden light was all but gone, and he only shone hazy shades of yellow-grey. He looked ill. As he was taken away by the winning auctioneer, he simply shook his head in shame and opened his mouth as if to try and get words out that never came. He, too, disappeared into the distance._

_Next came North. He slumped against two men who held him as he was forced to walk with shackles around his feet and wrists. The limp he carried was obvious. His eyes were no longer bright and blue but shady and mistrustful. The wonder was lost from them. A woman and a man led him slowly away, and he briefly met Jack's eyes with a look of overwhelming sadness, which shortly changed to immense disgust and anger. He grumbled 'your fault' just loud enough for Jack to hear, and the crowd went wild with the spectacle of a Guardian being shooed off and shamed by his own family._

_This time, a whole row of people were led along, tied to each other by ropes. Jack flinched for a minute when he realised that they were just children- his believers. Jamie, his sister, Pippa, Claude, Caleb, Monty and Cupcake all ended up tripping over themselves as they shuffled along uncomfortably. But instead of coming from where the three Guardians had been lead from, the children were walked from behind Jack. The man who held their ropes minded out for him, but the children did not. Instead, they just continued to pace along with the biggest steps they could possibly manage while tied like this, and passed right through Jack._

_'They don't believe.' Pitch said simply over the amused chortles of the bidders. 'They forgot you.'_

_Jack gasped at the horrible and over-familiar sensation of being invisible. He hated it more than anything. The chill that passed through him... Or was it heat? It wasn't really either, it was indescribable. It didn't so much as hurt, it was just extremely unpleasant. He could feel every fibre of his body, everything that made him Jack, tear and break apart into millions of pieces. After only a second, all of those segments of him would come crashing back together in a nauseating explosion of emotion and awareness of every bone, muscle, joint and the pints of blood he held inside his veins. Much too much awareness of his own body. It's like he could feel his lungs and the shape that they were, the purpose that they serve, and everything that touches them or connects them to the rest of his body. It left him with a crushing sensation of pure emptiness, a loneliness nobody can comprehend until they feel it for themselves. He sucked in a breath and shuddered as the children continued on to a man in a suit with sunglasses covering his eyes._

_'They'll make a good hunt.' he said absently, nodding towards the ex-believers. 'Once the wolves get the scent of them...'_

_Jack blocked out hearing any more of that sentence. He didn't want to imagine what those men were going to do with his precious children._

_Finally, came Bunny. A high price was put on him, and when the mangled shouts of the auctioneers died down into grumbles of depression from those who hadn't won, he was brought out in front of the crowds._

_A thin stream of blood trickled down his matted chest and made it sticky and wet. He looked beaten up and in pain, and he didn't even try to hide it. He glared at Jack with disappointment glowing in his green eyes, to which the Winter Spirit had no response. When Bunny was feeling any sort of emotion other than calm and love towards Jack, he was screaming and shouting at him. But this didn't happen now, and that's what scared the teenager._

_Jack watched as the rabbit was taken from his cage and forced to stumble over the beaten ground, shaking his head and letting a few tears streak down his face as well. He repeated 'it's your fault' over and over until his throat was raw._

It was only then that the Guardians and Jack noticed that he was crying. _Crystalline tears rolled endlessly down the damaged teenager's cheeks, freezing when they fell off his skin and clinked onto the ground. 'My fault...' Jack felt the dreaded word on his tongue and grew accustomed to it in seconds. It suited him._

_The bidders hushed and stood very still, then started to cover the coffins of Jack's family with dirt. As soon as they were buried, a layer of snow appeared over them as if they'd been dug years ago. The men and women at the auction were gone, and the graveyard was left silent and eerie once again. A bird tweeted sweetly in a tree, but in the midst of all of this, it sounded twisted and mortifying._

_Jack stood perfectly still, taking everything that had just happened in._ The Guardians watched him in horror. He... shivered? Jack doesn't shiver... _He started shaking, his teeth chattering together._

_Pitch leaned casually on a tall headstone. 'This is what the cold feels like, Jack. I suppose you've forgotten what it feels like to be cold- it's been so long since the lake.'_

_'B-but I c-can't b-be c-c-cold?!' Jack replied weakly, hugging himself to bring some kind of warmth to his body. He didn't think he'd ever be doing that._

_'Here you can.' Pitch replied, scratching some bristly lichen off the memorial he leaned on. 'I just wanted you to feel it again. To know what it's like to be so cold you can't feel, can't move- until eventually, you die. I want you to know how that feels, Jack, so that every time you kill someone in the cold you'll be haunted by what it feels like for them. It's only fair, really.'_

_'I-I...' Jack started then swallowed. 'I d-don't w-want-t t-to kno-know.' he said with emphasis on each syllable, having to concentrate hard on making sense through his slowly freezing mouth._

_'Too late.' Pitch said and disappeared into thin air- not the shadows or the dark, he just... disappeared._

_Jack stood for a minute before slowly falling to his knees. Soon after, he collapsed onto his side into the snow, the landscape before him now just like one of the poles. There was nothing to be seen but white for miles in every direction._

The Guardians watched in terror.

_Jack's lips started to turn blue and chapped in the blistering winds, the snow falling ever faster around him. He shuddered and convulsed at every fierce gust, and every breath he took seemed to sap a considerable chunk of his remaining energy. His lungs burned with the vicious cold and his limbs started to numb. The snow that settled on him stayed there and coated him in a blanket of white, and the chattering of his teeth got slower and slower._

_Soon enough, Jack was so cold he couldn't move._

_His limbs felt like they weren't even there, and he was only dimly aware of their existence. He'd stopped moving at all minutes ago. Any remaining moisture in him had either been dried up or frozen, like the inside of his throat- it felt crisp and painful, as if he'd eaten a bucket of strong peppermints. His eyelids shut slightly and flitted whenever a snowflake threatened to land on his eye, but other than that, they did not move. The tears that had wetted his eyelashes were frozen and stuck together, making it nearly impossible to even blink. His cheeks stung and burned angrily from the wind, then they went numb too._

'Tooth...' Bunny said quietly, unmoving. 'This is no memory.'

'But it is.' Tooth gulped down the sick feeling inside her.

'But he cannot have memory of event that did not take place.' North added.

'That's because...' Tooth breathed in the bitterly cold air. 'This is a memory of a nightmare.'

_Jack Frost froze, stuck to the icy ground which he normally belonged on, every minute that passed bringing him closer to death._

_His blurred eyesight allowed him to see one last thing before his blood froze and his heart stopped- two plaits flapping either side of a child running. The dark red hat stood out from the landscape, and the dirty blonde hair fell happily either side of the face he couldn't see. She giggled and squealed with delight as she skipped around, unaware of the boy on the ground._

_'M-Megan...?' Jack managed to wheeze out of his exhausted body, only able to stare at her. 'I-I'm s-so s-sor-ry...' the pain that crossed his face in half a second was unbearable to anyone watching. His numb face couldn't move, but his eyes said everything. They were bright and shining, his pupils small and fearful, and one single tear fell sideways down his face before it solidified._

_The girl laughed with joy as she ran away into the tundra, and then she was gone._

_A lifetime of anguish and regret shone fiercely in the arctic blue eyes that stared unseeing at the white world, and that expression was the one that was frozen onto Jack Frost's face when he died._

* * *

Only after I'd written this did I realise how dark it is. Woah.

Okay so the story hit 50 reviews?! I actually love you guys so much... and when I respond to your review with something like 'aww thank you!' know that in real life I am actually squirming around and squealing with happiness. Apparently I am incapable of translating that excitement into words without sounding like a nutjob on 7 shots of espresso. :) I am just in shock over the attention this has been given... you're all amazing. Amazing amazing amazing.  
Also, people have been saying that 'Trauma' was emotional and powerful? I just did not see it coming out that way- C.M told me that she nearly cried (UPDATE: She did cry. Actually cried. Not _nearly_, she actually _did_. omg) O.o Crazy. Sorry that I mess with your feels so much- this one's not much better XD A lot of things happen in a short amount of time and the transitions in this chapter are very muddled up because I wanted to get that dream feeling to it. When you're dreaming, things change around you and it doesn't really bother you, so I tried to fit that in, but who knows how I did.

Okay I'll shut up. Another bajillion thank you's to all my reviewers, followers and favouriters. I love each and every one of you!

Emily xxxx No nightmares for you tonight my friend! *throws a barrel of dreamsand on you*


	48. Heroes

The Guardians took a few deep breaths and rubbed their painful eyes after the past three horrible memories before collecting themselves and focusing on the new one.

_The city of Burgess rose into view, it's tall buildings standing high and mighty above them. It was dark- very dark. Night time, and getting late. A couple of lights still twinkled from the apartment buildings, but everyone had fled back into their homes at the sight of the billowing and completely black clouds that shifted over the town. A storm was coming- a huge one- something that the residents of Burgess were all too used to. This time was different, however- these were no thick and full white clouds, stuffed with snow ready to blanket the whole area. These were so dark, any light the Moon reflected was completely blocked out._ This is what unnerved the Guardians. All but Sandy's memories finally flooded back after a couple of painful seconds- this was their weakest night. Easter Sunday.

_Enormous, thundering waves of nightmare sand crashed over the city, tearing up cars and street in the distance. Pitch sat upon a lone nightmare horse atop a tall block of flats, smiling impishly at the predicament the Guardians and the children had managed to get themselves into. Thunder shook the very ground beneath their feet as the tsunamis edged closer in a murderous stampede, and Jack's eyes widened abruptly with fear. He couldn't avoid it as much as he would have liked. North stood unsteadily on his feet, leaning on one of his swords as support for his weak and tired limbs while his right arm hung loosely by his side. Tooth wasn't flying. Bunny was no bigger than North's hand. The children looked terrified- all except Monty, who came pelting at full speed towards where his friends now stood, only to turn and yell in fright when he caught sight of the horrifying waves. _

_'You think a few __**children**__ can help you?' Pitch sneered, his eyes glowing dangerously yellow with power. His nightmare snorted aggressively beneath him, wishing with all it's being to pounce. 'Against __**this?**__' he gestured back to the waves now crashing over even the tallest of buildings, enclosing them all in a tight ring in the city centre. Lights flickered, sparked, then died across the streets. _

_North lifted his sword threateningly, but it seemed as if he would be no threat anytime soon. He groaned under the strain of holding it aloft, then dropped it's metal tip to the floor to ease his sudden bout of weakness. Tooth and Jack both ran quickly to his side, making sure he was safely upright before letting go. _

_Jamie gasped anxiously at the sight of his weakened idols, and Jack seemed to be the only one that noticed. 'They're just bad dreams, Jamie.' he tried to reassure, but the tired and dark lines on his face revealed his own weariness. _

_'We'll protect you mate.' Bunny said softly from his low point on the ground. His sparkling forest eyes didn't seem to agree. _

_'Awh, you'll protect __**them**__?' Pitch chuckled ominously as another crack of thunder and lightning lit him up from behind. Jack walked out determinedly a little further. 'But who will protect __**you**__?' _

_North tried to follow Jack, but he simply didn't have the strength. The teen looked down and flicked his eyes around for a second before refocusing them, mulling something over before quickly coming to his decision. He turned back towards North with a smile of regret on his face, suddenly looking much older than his age. He patted the big man gently on the hand to reassure him this was for the best- Jack was the only one not weakened by Easter- and nodded firmly before turning back to the Boogeyman. North shook his head and his normally glowing blue eyes, now dimmed and dull, looked panicked, but his body simply wouldn't obey his urge to move. To do something to protect their newest and youngest Guardian. Jack stormed forwards, determined to fight Pitch to protect his newly formed family to the best of his ability. He could buy them some time to escape. He knew it would end in his death. Yet he didn't seem to care- he'd always cared for others more than himself, and that's one of the reasons he was chosen to be a Spirit in the first place. _

_Suddenly, Jamie stepped forward and in front of his new friend, a determined expression set on his face. '__**I **__will.' Jack looked down at the endlessly selfless and brave little boy in front of him, eyes wide with shock, stopping in his tracks to just breathe for once. _

_'__**I**__ will.' Cupcake said firmly then pushed through the others to stand next to Jamie, fists clenched. _

_'__**I**__ will!' Claude and Caleb followed suit, shoving each other in their brotherly way to stand in front of the Guardians. They argued with each other like twins usually did, but this time there was no humour in their antics. Tooth and North exchanged worried glances for a split second. _

_'And me.' Pippa came forward, her eyebrows furrowed with deep courage. _

_'I-I'll try.' Monty offered and his voice wavered with fear. _

_Jack nodded gently down at Jamie, a worried expression knitted into his features. He couldn't live with himself if he let something happen to these kids. _

_After that, everybody turned to face Pitch with unwavering heroism burning fiercely in their eyes. They weren't going down without a fight. _

_'Still think there's no such thing as the Boogeyman?' Pitch sneered. He found their futile attempts at retaliation utterly laughable. _

_The nightmare sand wave raced ever closer, only seconds from impact now. It smashed glass and lifted cars from the street, picking up everything in it's wake and destroying as much as possible. Pitch Black watched in amusement. As it edged closer and closer, Jamie's expression only hardened further. _

_'I __**do**__ believe in you.' the brunette said. 'I'm just not afraid of you.'_

_The last second before the nightmares rained down on them was horrifying- Jack's eyes flew owlishly wide as he realised he could do nothing to protect these children. Bracing themselves for impact, Jamie leading at the front, all of the children lifted their hands in harmony to protect some part of themselves at least. But as they touched the onyx sand, something magical happened. _

_The power that the final believers held was undeniable. The black grains suddenly sprung into life and twisted in the blink of an eye into bright and golden dream sand- thin trails darted excitedly around the sky, dancing at their sudden release. This was their true form anyway- Pitch had never created his own sand, merely thwarted Sandy's into his own vile abomination. He took over the granules and controlled them, smothering them in fear, but now that they were released it was almost as if each one was singing. Everyone looked around in wonder at the sudden light and surge of good energy that throbbed around the city. Gold that touched black transformed and glistened like glitter across the night sky, and Pitch recoiled back in surprise. _

_Tooth suddenly gasped and felt her feathers brighten and glow- her wings buzzed with the electricity of flight as they came back to life from their dull throbbing, and she hovered just off the ground to test them out. The elated Spirit finally took off and twirled a few times before shooting off down the street, voices calling out after her shouting 'yeah! Tooth Fairy!' and whooping loudly. _

_North's eyes snapped open and practically burst out of his face they were so alive again, and he laughed heartily at the sudden turn of events before testing the weight of his swords in his unexpectedly strong hands again. _

_'Oh yeah!' Monty jumped excitedly where he stood and his glasses nearly fell off from the jerking motion. _

_Pitch looked positively pissed, to say the least. 'NO!' he shouted and pulled sideways on the reigns, attempting to get his nightmare away from the tainting sands. 'Get them! Do your jobs!'_

_The horses riled and pounced towards the children, but didn't get much further. Everything seemed to happen at once- Yetis appearing from portals and tiny Bunny running for his life. The kids stared in amazement at the furry creatures that ran around in front of them, then noticed the toys that flew effortlessly on the cool night air towards the nightmares. Bunny disappeared beneath a car, but as the steed pulled him back out by the tail, he simply laughed. _

_'G'day mate.' Bunny said teasingly and snaked his boomerangs between his fingers before launching himself into the air, front flipping around a couple of times then smashing the weapons into the enemy. The horses dissipated into nothing as he landed and caught his boomerangs, ecstatic to be back to normal size and fighting fit. He tapped the ground three times next to him- the code for something to come up from the Warren- and several huge stone eggs rose up from the holes. Moss coated their worn and aged faces, but they flipped them to their war expressions- one even managed to pick one of the twins up on it's head. 'Come on!' Bunny roared and bounded away. _

_Jack watched it all happen within barely seconds with fascination and elation clearly shining across his face. _

_'Let's get 'em!' Cupcake shouted with a tight fist, followed shortly by the others and several elves on tiny bikes. _

_Everyone started to attack random nightmares simultaneously, either making them crumble into nothing or quickly transforming them into beautiful dreams with the touch of a believing child. Jack had no other way of protecting or fighting other than himself, so instead went straight for his enemy to settle this once and for all. He fired icy attacks towards Pitch and his nightmares on the roof, snarling and frowning the whole way. Pitch launched himself into shadows of nightmare sand and Jack jumped quickly out of the way to another roof, firing bolts of freezing power everywhere he possibly could. He sprinted after the Boogeyman but ground to a halt when faced with a shot of nightmare sand being fired straight at him- he panted and froze ironically to where he was stood, but Tooth quickly darted in and cut up the sand creation with her razor sharp wings. She whooped and Jack called out 'Thanks Tooth!' _

_Bunny popped up from a chimney in a flurry of ash and soot, yelling 'Ho ho __**ho**__!' before chucking a boomerang into the nightmares that loyally surrounded Pitch. _

_North had, surprisingly conveniently, appeared on the roof across from the fight. Quickly realising his mistake, he turned back to the fight and saw Pitch swiftly trying to retreat in his direction. As the Boogeyman leaped, North met him in the middle and swiftly sliced through the nightmare he rode on, causing him to skid onto the pavement. The gutsy man followed after and met the huge nightmare sand pickaxe with his shining scimitar, which was promptly knocked out of his hands. Bunny jumped into the fight while North recovered his sword, flipping around the axe that was now stuck in the asphalt with practiced and expert level agility, chucking a boomerang out into the distance. Pitch recovered his weapon from the ground and swung it, but Tooth was too quick for him and sped past, cutting at his left side with her wings. The Boogeyman crumpled a little and Jack swept in, kicking hard at his left shoulder with his bare foot where a little flurry of snow erupted upon impact. _

_All four Guardians posed as if for a picture, their stances low and ready for an attack. Jack stood at the front, his staff clutched protectively in his hands as he glared daggers at Pitch. Bunny leaned back on the right of the Winter Spirit, his face crinkled with disgust as he twiddled his boomerang threateningly in his right hand. North, to the left, held one sword out and the other back, knees bent and poised ready to pounce. Tooth fluttered just behind, her shoulders up and stewing with anger. _

As the whole memory had been so dark, the Guardians hadn't noticed how dim and dreary the colours were. A sign more urgent finally made it through their enthralled minds, and Bunny quickly realised what was happening as the whole scene started to flicker and blur. It drifted in and out of black and white, some of the buildings smudged like ink on paper.

'Crikey, the bloody twenty four hour rule!' Bunny yelped and started to frantically search the quickly disappearing memory.

Sandy focused harder than ever- he could feel it, the dagger, and was almost _glad_ for it's presence. He was sick of it not being there, meaning only more pain for Jack. He focused hard- it took at least a minute for him to locate it, but quickly hurried over to a lamp post from which hung way too many traffic lights. The Sandman hurriedly ripped it off it's hinges and threw it to the ground before any of the nightmares in it started to taint his arms, but threw a whole wave of dream sand that completely destroyed the thing in less than a few seconds. The other three Guardians grinned at his speedy work, the colours of the scene finally settling back to normal and nothing blurring or twitching.

_'It's over, Pitch.' Jack said firmly, tired of this escapade. 'There's no place to hide.'_

_Pitch looked momentarily phased, but that quickly passed and his scheming grin erupted onto his face again. He disappeared into the darkness, and shadows twisted up around the four Guardians in his shape, but the real him appeared just behind Jack. His pickaxe was gripped in both hands as he raised it, and Bunny was the first to alert the teenager of the danger he was in. _

_'Jack, look OUT!' Bunny shouted and threw a boomerang, but it simply rebounded off the handle. _

_Pitch swung down as Jack turned with fear in the bright blue pools he had for eyes,_ and for the Guardians it was a painful reminder of what waited for them when they awoke.

_But before the weapon could ever reach the Winter Spirit, a golden tendril of dream sand snaked around the handle and wrenched hard. Pitch flew with it towards it's source as it reeled back in like a fishing line, where there was a swirling and bright mass of unmistakeable dream sand. Recognition fluttered across everyone's faces as they realised what- who- was stood in front of them. _

_Sandy appeared like a vision straight from a dream, looking feistily down at the Boogeyman in front of him with warm orange eyes. Pitch's face couldn't have been more hilarious. Sandy punched Pitch into the sky, still holding onto him by a whip of dream sand, then turned to the children that ran at him. _

_'The Sandman!' Monty said happily. Sandy responded with a golden hat tip off to the kids, and hastily slammed Pitch into the pavement when he felt the rope being tugged at. _

_The Guardians flew at him with elation, celebrating his return and over the Man In The Moon that he was alive. Sandy himself couldn't have been happier- he gathered sand around his feet and flew up on a little cloud into the sky, pleading for his once tainted sand to return to him in all it's golden beauty. He looked up at the Man and grinned, then released his snaking vines across the world, bringing believers galore with him. He shut his eyes and sighed in the bliss of spreading his power and feeling the children believe again. _

_Hundreds of dream sand creatures flew and stomped across the city- a massive Stegosaurus rampaged calmly through the streets, fish swam in shoals through the air, manta rays, paper birds, dolphins and snowflakes all glittered and lit up the sky. _

_Jack scooped up a handful of snow and formed a perfect snowball, then threw it at his believer. They grinned at each other, and then everyone started laughing and pelting snow at one another. _

_'Your centre?' North asked softly, gesturing to the fun the children were having with Yetis and Elves alike. _

_'Well...' Jack smiled mischievously. 'It took a while, but I figured it out.'_

_North grinned lovingly at their newest ally, then chucked a tiny wooden thing that Jack caught with ease. He looked down warmheartedly at a tiny Russian doll of himself, staff and all, and chuckled fondly. He looked up at North almost as if he wouldn't believe that he was really there, really doing this for him, but he was, and he laughed genuinely, and then everything turned white._

* * *

Hey everyone!

Yup, I found several mistakes, but it wasn't quite as bad as I'd feared ;) I'm not even joking- about a second after I shut my laptop after posting this chapter, my mum walked into the room to chuck me off it! It was close shave, but we made it :P  
Another **MASSIVE** thank you to all of you who are reviewing and following and favouriting and even just reading- I cannot express in words how every email makes me feel, how your overly kind words affect me. It's amazing. I NEVER expected this fic to get so much attention, let alone having people tell me it's one of the best they've ever read, that they've been reduced to tears, stayed up all night to read and that I'm an amazing author? Oh my god, I can't even begin to express my gratitude... _*flails pathetically in glee like a beached whale*_ That's probably as accurately as I can describe it.  
Did you know, we're nearing the end of the Repairing Arc? Ooo, tense._ But_... there's a few secrets to be revealed first. I am currently building myself a bunker- it should keep me safe from tomatoes, rotten fruits and vegetables, snowballs, fire, gunshots, bombs, nuclear attacks and sheer hatred... I expect all of these if not more in the coming chapters from you all. I have thoroughly prepared myself for it however, so do your worst! ;)

Your irresistibly cruel author...  
Emily xxx CAKE FOR EVERYONE! :D


	49. Fire

You should know that I'm in my bunker. I finished building it yesterday. I might be in here for a while.

* * *

_'Keep up!' Andrew's deep voice rung out through the familiar village with excitement._

_'We are, we are!' Lily giggled loudly, out of breath._

The Guardians watched a thirteen year old Jack and seven year old Lily trail tiredly behind their father. _He was running up ahead, laughing as he peeked over his shoulder to tease his children. They left the village and ran through the forest that surrounded the settlement, tangling their clothes and limbs as they hit the branches that splayed out across their way. Jack was sprinting just behind Lily, laughing hysterically yet silently due to his shortness of breath. She was wheezing and they were quickly falling behind their roaring father._

_'Come on, come on!' Andrew shouted and bellowed a hearty laugh. 'You two are useless at racing! It's no fun when I win every time!'_

_'Fun, eh?' Jack smirked. He saw Lily slow to an almost standstill she was so tired, but she wanted so desperately to win. 'Come on, Lily, let's show him!' Jack quickly scooped her panting form and slung her over his back, where she held on for dear life as Jack started to run at full speed. _

_The forest blurred past as the Guardians followed the human boy that carried his sister deeper and deeper into the forest, following the flicking of branches and movement in the ground that gave away where their father was. Jack puffed air in and out and stretched his back out from the weight of his sister, slowing slightly in the process as he got more and more tired._

_Finally, there was an abrupt halt and an instant plunge into darkness as Jack broke out through some branches. A thud could be heard from behind and a complaining squeal from the girl that fell off her brother's shoulders to the floor. _The Guardians briefly panicked, but it was alright when they realised Jack had only shut his eyes for a few seconds, causing the blackout._ He'd managed to run into his still father and let go of the weight on his shoulders as he lost his balance, and Lily was currently pulling an irritated expression as she wiped herself down._

_'Dad!' Jack moaned, rubbing his head where he had collided with his bulky father. 'What the-'_

_'Look!' Andrew didn't even let his son finish before he stepped out of the way to reveal what it was he was staring at. _

_In front of the man stood a tree. On the tree were big, purple-red fruits that looked so very alien amongst the pines of this forest- Jack and Lily both straightened themselves out and stared at it in wonder._

_'What are they, dad?' Lily asked quietly._

_'Plums!' Andrew exclaimed out loud, his hands on his hips. 'Ha! I haven't seen any in years!'_

_'Plums!' Jack laughed too, the simple joy shining out of his face._

_'Come on- they're in season, too!' Andrew jogged towards the sloping tree, reaching out and grabbing a few off the branches. It was true- it was summer here, and the sun was shining hot and magnificent today. That was one of the reasons they'd gone out. He handed a fruit each to his two kids, and gestured for them to wait before eating it._

_'Shut your eyes.' Andrew instructed gently._

_'Dad-' Jack started, but was promptly interrupted._

_'No, shut your eyes!' Andrew chuckled to himself as he watched his son reluctantly close his eyes and hold the fruit in his palm. 'Alright… on three! One… two…' they all lifted the plums to their mouths. 'Three!'_

_Everyone took a juicy bite and chewed happily before exclaiming. 'Oh my God!' Jack said excitedly over the food in his mouth, and his family chuckled. Andrew probably should have told his son off for saying that, but neither he nor Emma had ever been particularly strict on how to speak. _

_'Good, right?' Andrew grinned and wiped some juice from his fuzzy chin. 'It's been years, old friend.' He looked fondly down at the fruit in his palms, eyes glistening._

_'Dad, you are so weird sometimes. Please stop.' Jack barely held in a laugh. Lily giggled by his side, watching as her father took another greedy bite. _

_'We'll come back here another day with some baskets and collect some- that is, if we can find our way here again.' Andrew glanced up at the bright light trickling through the trees. It must have been at least thirty five degrees Celsius out here. 'Maybe we'll be lost out here all night!' he jokingly threatened. 'I don't remember which way home is, and I've definitely never been here before.' _

_Once they had all finished eating, they took a few moments to look around. Lily started to climb a tree, Andrew helping her scale the limbs of the trunk of the evergreen. Jack wandered around a little and explored the clearing they had managed to find themselves in. He peered in and out of the trees, exploring his home woodland with all the love and attention he usually did. He kept walking, until he stopped abruptly and backtracked a few steps, staring constantly to his left. _

_There, exactly where he was staring, was a path. The thick branches of trees had purposefully been cut back to make a way through, although judging by the state of the stumps, it had been many years ago. A few vines and new, thinner branches spread across the break, but there were definitely flat stones placed in the ground to serve as a walkway. 'Hey!' Jack called out back where he came from. 'Pa! Lily! Come see!' _

_Barely a minute later they were at his side, looking at what he was stood in front of, too. 'What do you think it is?' Lily asked gently, slipping her hand into her father's. _

_'Why don't we find out?' Andrew beamed a curious smile at his children and stepped forwards to swipe away the vegetation in the way. Sometimes he was a bigger kid than his own two put together. Jack and Lily followed eagerly, walking along a thin straight path that ran for another fifty metres or so. When they finally came clear of the trees, it was another clearing just like the one they'd been in before._

_One thing, though, was vastly different. _

_In the middle of this break of trees stood a house. A wide area of open space with no plants or trees surrounded the building, just overgrown grass. It looked like something out of a fairy tale. The house was made of wood, a bit like a log cabin, except every single window had been smashed out. It extended for two floors, which was unusual for a wooden house, and the exterior was tarnished and damaged. It looked as if it hadn't been lived in for a very long time, abandoned and left for the wild to overrun- which only added to the eeriness of it. Inside the broken windows was darkness- nothing could be seen in there, not at this angle anyway, and all three of their curiosities were piqued. None quite so much as Andrew's, however._

_'Want to explore?' the father asked with one eyebrow curled upwards, grabbing for his daughter's hand._

_'Looks scary, pa.' Lily said nervously, gripping his large palm and clutching her own little skirt._

_'Scared?' Jack grinned at her, rocking back and forth on his heels in a mocking manner. 'Well, looks like me and dad will just have to go in without you… and who knows what could happen to you out here while we're in there?' he started to walk towards the house, not particularly liking the look of it, but he never had been one to ignore his call for adventure._

_Andrew started off towards the building, too, and Lily seemed to fret with herself internally before sighing loudly and running to catch up. The three of them all walked into the eerie house together, forcing their eyes to adjust to the dimness of the place. As soon as they could see, Lily grabbed her father's hand. They tentatively looked around- there were cobwebs everywhere, and the whole place was surprisingly dry. Damp seemed to have crept along the outer walls, but inside it was like a trick- everything in here was creaking and splintering it was so dried out. A thin staircase led upstairs, but there were a couple of rooms to the sides of this hallway they decided to look around in before venturing up._

_To the left, the room was extremely empty. It seemed to have once been the living room- pieces of a broken chair lay rotting on the floor, and a fireplace set in stone lay against the far wall. A square patch just above it was a different colour to the rest of the wall, what the family presumed used to be covered by a mirror or painting. A few black coals still lay in the grate, but other than the dirt and the grime, this room was empty. A log pile was situated in the corner, stacked all the way up to the ceiling._

_They left this room and went into the room on the right, that one similarly empty. A few pots and pans lay about alongside another fireplace, a single table stood right in the centre. On it sat an oil lamp, which Andrew took no hesitation to go and fetch, glad to find there was a flask with lighting oil still in it next to the lamp. Knowing how dark the upstairs had looked, he pulled out his pieces of flint and sparked them over the lamp, lighting it instantly. He smiled at his slightly spooked kids, before walking back to the door and out into the hallway. There was another door they hadn't noticed before- one just under the staircase. He went over to investigate, the children watching timidly from behind._

_Andrew opened the stiff door wide, coughing as a cloud of dust exploded in his face. After spluttering for a few seconds more, he peered in and held the light out. Steps led downwards, and he followed them carefully, warning his children to mind the tender wood beneath their feet. When they reached the bottom, they noticed this used to only be a pantry of sorts. A few bottles of spirits lay in a covering of dirt in a wooden rack, and the ceiling was low and claustrophobic. It was stuffy, and deciding there was nothing interesting here, they went back up. _

_The family came back out into the hallway, looking up at the stairs. 'Ready to have a look around the bedrooms?' Andrew asked with a smirk, holding the fire under his chin to shine eerie light on his face._

_'As we'll ever be!' Jack replied excitedly, though he wasn't feeling quite as confident as he let on. _

_'Right!' Andrew puffed up his shoulders comically and turned towards the stairs. The two siblings did the same, filing behind their father. The stairs creaked and groaned disturbingly beneath their feet as they clambered up, and neither of the children could escape a couple of worried gasps escaping their lips. Andrew simply turned back and grinned, seeing that they had only made it up about two or three steps. He decided having petrified kids in a dark, abandoned house wasn't the best thing to have to deal with, so turned the situation on its head. He walked back down to where they were stood, and they stopped to look at him in the half light. _

_'Race you.' Andrew said firmly, challenging his children to have some fun. Jack and Lily's faces lifted instantly, and they clasped each other's hands and prepared themselves to run. 'Ready?' they nodded and the light flickered in their eyes with determination. 'Three… two…' but before he could ever reach one, Jack and Lily were already off. They laughed as they went, and Andrew quickly followed after._

_The brother and sister realised with horror all of their mistakes. The wooden steps creaked beneath their feet and complained loudly with every thud that was made on them, and when Jack felt the horrible shattering of wood give way beneath him he only travelled ever faster. Aware of his sister feeling the same panic by his side, he pulled on her hand to keep her going and didn't dare look back. Rusty nails stuck out jaggedly at awkward angles from the edges of the planks._

_'__**Run, Jack, Lily, faster!**__' Andrew shouted, his voice suddenly panicked, and the children picked up on the terrified tone of their father. They felt hands on their backs as he pushed them up ahead of him, briefly halting himself. 'Come on, quickly now! That's it!' he encouraged._

_Knowing he was nearly there only encouraged Jack more, so he started to run. He crashed on the chapped steps as he sprinted and felt the deathly crack of wood under his feet. Before he knew it, Jack was flinging himself and his sister onto the next step before he fell through the cracks. Not waiting any longer, he started to scramble up the remaining few stairs, nearly every single one soft and weak under his weight. Panting aggressively and forcing himself to keep moving without looking back for even a second, Jack and Lily eventually reached the top. The last couple of steps had been made of stone, so they didn't crack and break, despite the vines and foliage growing all along them and wrapping them in their spindly arms._

_He held his sister to him and turned, and that's when he saw something he'd never wanted to experience in his life._

_Andrew was tearing up the stairs- running as fast as his legs could take him to make it to his children. The steps broke beneath him, and he didn't dare let go of the lamp he held on to. He was so close- so __**close **__to getting to them-_ just a few steps_, Jack said to himself, eyes wide. But as Andrew neared the top, a horrifying snap echoed around the silent house, and he jumped. He jumped to reach those stone stairs near the top, knowing that the middle area of the stairway was giving out beneath him. His eyes grew huge and fear shone through them, the amber in them giving off waves of colour from the shuddering flame he held, and he met his son's eyes. Andrew reached out a hand at the same time as Jack, and their fingers met in the middle._

_Jack gasped loudly at the contact as he leaned dangerously over the collapsing staircase, trying to grip his father's skin. The gentle brush of contact was suddenly and horribly lost, and before they could do anything, another snap seemed to deafen all of them. Lily and Jack both screamed as loudly as they could, but all they could do was watch._

_Andrew, the husband of Emma and father of Jack and Lily, disappeared in a flurry of splinters and eruption of dust. _

**_'DAD!'_**_ Jack shouted as loudly as his lungs would let him, but no sound seemed to come out._

**Crash.**

_Piercing amber eyes._

**Crash. **

_A forgiving and loving smile._

**Thud.**

_Nothing._

_Everything was deathly still after that. He stared down at the rubble beneath him, coughing while he waited for the debris to settle down._

'Jack…' Tooth threw her hands over her mouth and shut her eyes tight. None of the Guardians could take this. How much more could the boy go through? Oh Manny, why hadn't they been able to do anything?

_'__**DAD!?**__' Jack screamed again, tears starting to stream down his face. Finally, a light appeared from below. In the silence, Jack realised all too late how big that light was. It was too big and too bright to be coming from that tiny little lamp, and in that light, through the dust, he saw his father. _

_Andrew was lying still, not one floor beneath them, but _two_, in the basement. He was on his back, staring up with his destructive amber eyes, dust and bits of wood and flooring covering him from head to toe. 'Jack…' he managed to just whisper out._

_'DAD!' Jack screamed again, searching all around him for anything he could use to do _something_. 'I'M COMING! STAY STILL!' _

_'No!' Andrew started but coughed violently, groaning at the pain it caused him and soon found he was unable to move. 'Jackson, listen to me…' he wheezed in a shaky breath and waited for his son to meet his stare. 'Take Lily… get outside… now, Jackson…'_

_'NO! I'M NOT LEAVING YOU!' Jack panted in the darkness- there had to be something. 'WE'RE TRAPPED!' he stared at the steps that had been completely destroyed beneath him, and glanced at his sister who was shaking uncontrollably._

_'Jump.' Andrew instructed, coughing again weakly. 'You have… to jump. Take Lily… jump, Jackson. The fire…' he glanced to all around him, as the oil from his lamp had spread out all over the wooden floor and walls, and it was spreading _fast._ He only knew what would happen when the bottles of spirits next to him were lit, and he had to make sure his children were out before that happened._

_'No…' Jack couldn't protest more than that, suddenly unable to think straight or even move._

_'Yes.' Andrew said gruffly, his voice growing weaker. 'Jump. Explode… if you don't… please, Jackson…'_

_Jack paused, then nodded once, his face curling in on itself as he started to cry. _

_'I love you.' Andrew whispered, and he wasn't certain whether or not his son had heard him when he disappeared from his sight. He appeared back a few seconds later, holding Lily in his arms. She didn't seem to be struggling at all, and he stood on the last step, staring out at the jump he had to make with his sister in his hold. 'You… can do it…'_

_Jack was frozen. He couldn't move. He couldn't do this. He couldn't make that jump- it had to be at least three metres long. His father… his father was below. Dying. He wasn't going to survive. He looked down one more time, swallowing and taking deep breaths as he made eye contact with his father one last time. He smiled shakily, and Andrew smirked back. Maybe he should just throw Lily down and jump down to his dad… Maybe he could save him… Maybe he could at least die with him._

_But it was all just __**maybe.**_

_He knew that his father was going to die today because they had stupidly decided to explore an abandoned house. If he'd just said no to going in… none of this would have happened._

_That was when Jack became aware of the fire that licked up at his arms and legs. It was spreading fast in the dehydrated house, crackling and breaking rafters and walls everywhere. He had to jump- now or never- but he just couldn't. Lily was crying in his hold. He held her head in his palm to his shoulder._

Come on, Jack, you can do it…_ Andrew's words rung out through his head when they had been practicing shooting. _Just aim at that little point… take a deep breath, and fire. It's as simple as that.

_Andrew looked absently on from below, feeling the blackness creep up on him, which he was almost glad for as he felt the heat around him. The flames were only seconds away from the spirits now, and Jack had to jump._

_'Go…' Andrew managed to wheeze out, before another part of the house collapsed and fell on him, and he closed his eyes for the final time. He was proud of his son. And his daughter. And his wife. And he loved them. And he hoped they'd never forget that. _

_Jack breathed in and watched as his dad was covered in more debris, his face finally hidden from view. Taking in a shaking and rattling breath, he lowered his legs and suddenly noticed the fire. It was everywhere. Everywhere._

_So he jumped._

_Jack and Lily came down with an almighty crash at the end of the whole flight of stairs, and Jack cried out in pain as he took the brunt of the fall. They collided brutally with the wall at the end of the stairs, then crumpled to the floor together, sobbing and dirty all over. The hissing of wood was deafening all around them and so was the crackling of the whole house lighting up like hay that had been left out in the sun for years. Everything lit instantly. _

The Guardians watched on helplessly, numbed and traumatised.

_The fire… the rafters… The walls lit up and flickered deep red and yellow, a few items scattered around either charred and black or being tickled by flames._

This was it.

This was why Jack had been in shock.

_Smoke drifted scarily low now, and Jack couldn't see above the hole in the staircase the black churning gas was so thick. But neither could he find the willpower to stand up. He stared at the house as it lit up, the cobwebs hissing and then disappearing in seconds, every wall lit up and burning._

**_Everything_**_ burning._

_He coughed violently and remembered his sister was still sobbing in his hold. He would have stayed there and died too, if Lily hadn't been there. With an indescribable amount of effort, he hauled himself to his feet with Lily still in his tight grasp, the whole house now like a tinderbox. He took one last look down where his father lay, choked on his own breath as he sobbed, and turned away to the door. _

_Just as Jack flung it open, nearly the whole of the building shook and trembled. Several thundering booms echoed deafeningly from below- the spirits had been lit and were exploding. Jack flung himself and Lily out of the door and down onto the grass, rolling away as bits of flaming wood rained down on them. He coughed violently and let his sibling go._

_Lily clambered to her feet and backed away as Jack hacked air in and out of his painful lungs. He finally collapsed, breathing heavily and not caring about the bits of housing that fell on him, nor the intense heat. Those explosions had been heard for miles around, and he knew it._

_He stood up limply and walked over to Lily, pulling her shaking form into himself and just watching as the whole house lit up like a beacon. The flames seemed to reach up into the sky, touching the clouds and turning them black with the harsh smoke. Tears streamed down his soot covered face, leaving behind trails in grey, and he blinked owlishly. _

_This couldn't be real. No. it wasn't. He hadn't just lost his father. His sister wasn't crying into his chest. He wasn't here. He wasn't. It was a nightmare… just a nightmare. _

_A nightmare he couldn't wake from._

_They stood there for a long time, watching the wooden house collapsing in on itself and absorbing the fierce heat that came off the flames. Only a few rafters were left of the top floor, the roof now having caved in. Another explosion shook the very ground, and the scene blurred with Jack's tears._

'No, Jack…' Bunny accidentally said out loud- not that anyone noticed. 'No…'

_Finally, they could hear people breaking through the trees and exclaiming loudly at the flames that reached up impossibly high. Everyone knew it couldn't be stopped. They had to let it die down._

_Jack suddenly realised that he was no longer holding his sister, and panicked for a minute until he felt her tugging on his shirt. He didn't turn to look at her. She was crying- wailing, now. Screaming. All he could do was stand there._

_No, he couldn't even stand there. His legs gave way beneath him, and several arms caught him and lowered him gently down, and the last echoes of this memory faded away into blissful nothing._

* * *

Ouch. I'm sorry.

I felt like it had to be done. For that, I'm sorry. It's just... in the film, I couldn't ignore the absence of a father in Jack's memories- it must have held some significance that there wasn't one. That's why I felt like this was necessary- if there had been parent**_s_** (plural) in the film, I would've left them as happy family until... you know... _Jackson_.

I love you guys, really :) I hope you know that, so feel free to go mad in reviews and just all out attack me if you want. If it helps.

So we've nearly reached 70 reviews?! You guys are incredible. 50 followers, and 40 favourites. Seriously, you guys are amazing. I love you all so so so so so much. And you still keep reading even if I do horrible things like this. Which makes you even better people! Keep up the good work, lads! ;)

Your horrible, terrible, evil author,

Emily xxx Early Christmas presents for you all for this feelsy chapter, and for surviving it!

P.S: I didn't write much about the Guardians reactions in this chapter because... well... I didn't really know. It just didn't really seem to fit in anywhere, so I gave them a couple of lines, but other than that I'm happy that I've left it how it is. I suppose it adds to how affected they were by the memory- if they couldn't even do or say anything in my mind, I guess that means they didn't really have anything to say. I don't know- let me know what you think.

*braces myself for the oncoming storm*


	50. Rising Danger

Jamie stopped still when he walked into the infirmary of the North Pole. He inhaled a shaking breath and cautiously stepped closer, not at all liking the sight before him. All the Yetis in the room turned to look at him, all of their eyes fixed on his in surprise and confusion, but he gave them no opportunity to question why he was there. He walked slowly over to the centre of the room, passing glances at the deep sleeping Guardians in a circle of armchairs, but they weren't his prime concern.

_Jack_. That was the only word that echoed over and over through Jamie's head. Baby Tooth, the tiny colourful fairy, came buzzing just behind him and hovered next to him for a minute before setting down on his shoulder. It was the most comfort she could give at such a dire time. Bandages completely covered his bare chest, his face was cut up and bruised along with any other revealed flesh. He was pale and sickly looking, and if it had not been for the shuddering breaths, Jamie would have thought him dead. He reached the side of the bed that the unconscious Winter Spirit was lying on and hovered his hands above the teenager tentatively, before softly taking a cold hand. As much as he would have liked, just as he expected, Jack did not squeeze his palm back. He stared at the Guardian who was always so full of life, now pathetically fighting for air and slowly dying on a bed. He didn't want to believe it, but he knew that Jack was dying. He didn't know how, he just _knew_. But that wasn't something he was about to let happen.

'What… why are they asleep?' Jamie turned to a Yeti, and suddenly realised that he wouldn't be able to understand a word that they said to him. Picking up on the same issue, one of the furry giants quickly left the room and came back in barely a minute later with a notebook in fuzzy hands. He hastily wrote what was happening in as little detail as possible, understanding that they wouldn't be able to hide anything from _this_ kid if he wanted to know.

'They're… in his memories?' Jamie's eyes widened sceptically. 'Saving him?'

Baby Tooth chirped happily next to him, nodding in encouragement. The Yeti with the pad quickly informed the child that they were guarding the Guardians, as Pitch could show up at any minute. At that fact, Jamie's resolve intensified dramatically. He turned to look around the wide room, observing Jack's staff leaning against the wall in the corner, safely protected inside a sturdy looking glass case and watched at all times by two Yetis. Also inside the case was a beautiful wooden box that he instantly recognised as Tooth's work. He had to laugh at the ridiculous amount of locks on it, despite the churning it caused in his stomach at how important its contents must be. The Yeti shoved the notebook in front of his face with a crudely drawn memory box on the front, but remembered that he had never seen one. He drew a tooth next to it, and an arrow pointing at the box, then a snowflake that messed up in the middle.

'It's where Jack's memories are stored?' Jamie enquired, and Baby Tooth chattered in confirmation. 'Where is it?' The Yetis all pointed at the wooden box in perfect synchronisation, emitting a chuckle from the child. 'Looking after it well, I see!'

One of the Yetis watching the case lazily lifted a hand and signed a small salute, despite facing the other way. Jamie joined Jack at the bed once again and sat down on a chair that had been pulled up for him. He sighed heavily and placed his chin in his hands, unable to take his eyes off the Guardian in front of him. After a few minutes, he lifted his head and watched the sympathetic expressions that crossed the Yetis' faces. Baby Tooth came down and nuzzled his hand affectionately. 'So, do we know how they're doing?' he nudged his head in the general direction of the sleeping Guardians.

Baby Tooth thought about lying for a moment, but realised it wouldn't help anything, and promptly shook her head. Jamie audibly sighed. 'When will we know anything?' he said tiredly, rubbing his eye with his knuckles. She shut her eyes and dramatically acted out how someone would wake up. Understanding what she meant, Jamie just turned back to Jack. 'I'm not leaving until then.' He said resolutely, but nobody in the room could find the guts to tell him he had to go home. They'd let him stay a bit longer, at least. Jamie's hope rose then, knowing that the Guardians were hard at work fixing his friend, and his fear gave away for however brief a time he would be allowed.

Pitch noticed this. He'd been keeping a close eye on Jamie since they'd "run into" each other in the child's room, especially noting how his fear had been at a steadily increasing level since his departure. But suddenly, it was gone- not completely, but nearly. It was enough to mean something _good_ was happening, and the thought of it made the Boogeyman sick. _Nothing_ was getting in his way now, he'd worked for too long and too hard to let this plan go down the drain.

The grey-skinned man watched his globe, the light given out from it crushing enough on its own. He didn't need to be reminded of his previous loss. But there was one light in particular- a stubborn one, and one he'd quickly realised was none other than Jamie Bennett. He would have laughed at the fact that the child was now at the Pole, if he hadn't felt the ridiculous rush of hope, memories, dreams and wonder all rolled into one being given off by the kid like radio waves. It was disgusting. That was when Pitch Black realised something was going wrong in his plan- if a child was gaining all these Guardian emotions when he saw Frost, he can't have been doing as badly as he would have liked.

Setting his shadow course for the North Pole, and knowing how weak he was still, he started to slowly move through the darkness to the blinding white of the top of the planet. _How he detested the place._ He _had_ to know what was happening, and _why_ Jack Frost's fear was dropping.

Jamie twirled his finger through a lock of his hair, aimlessly daydreaming and recalling the fun times he'd had with Jack and the other Guardians. He'd been told why everyone was asleep, what they were doing, and what they were planning to do when Jack woke up. It sounded like a good plan to him, so he memorised everything about it and mulled it over in his head. He wanted to be the one to hand over the teenager's memories, not some Yeti, but he had accepted that the Guardian may not have any recollection of who he was. _That could be painful._ The Yetis were busy with work around him, one or two occasionally crowding around him to check on the Winter Spirit, before shuffling away again. Jack's harsh breathing was deafeningly loud in Jamie's ears, and he attempted to shut it out but simply couldn't. One feeling that he couldn't put his finger on was the sense of dread that took over his entire body. Jamie felt like something terrible was going to happen any second and, recognising the unusual sensation from when he'd been faced by an angry Boogeyman only months before, he knew the feeling wasn't unjustified.

He turned to the Yetis, who currently seemed not to notice anything, then peered out the window. He could have sworn he saw darkness and impossible shadows covering one of the glaciers in the distance, but he blinked and it was gone. He desperately wanted to tell himself that it was just him being irrational, but somehow he knew the fear of what was about to come was perfectly right. It was foreshadowing in its cruellest form. 'Baby Tooth, I think…' Jamie swallowed hard as he looked at the concerned glint in the tiny hummingbird's eyes. 'I think he's coming.'

Baby Tooth recoiled and shot up, grabbing the attention of several of the Yetis in the room. She explained quickly and the big furry beasts left only a second after, garbling to each other in hushed tones and ordering a few others around. Only about a dozen of the Sasquatches were left in the room due to the absence, but Jamie felt safe that they were enough. He went back to the bed in the centre and gripped Jack's hand tighter, only feeling the pulse beating through his skin very slightly, and much too slowly at that.

A crack of thunder and lightning unexpectedly exploded through the shuddering workshop, and everyone's heads turned towards the windows. Out in the distance, on the flats of the arctic, shadows crept and clawed at the ice. It inched closer and closer, and everyone in the huge building shot into action. Jamie turned to his friend on the bed, his friend in the air by his ear, and his friends around him, beginning to panic. The mini fairy laid a gentle hand on his cheek, but her feathers ruffled and shook in anxiety. She thought long and hard, flicking between watching the Guardians and the outside world. She was practically in charge alongside a few other Yetis, and she didn't have many choices.

Baby Tooth knew that if Pitch got in, anything could happen. She knew it was too much of a risk to go out and fight him. She knew it was futile defending the Workshop. She knew that if he got to Jack, he could ruin all of the work that the Guardians had just done and finally kill the Winter child, meaning the possible deaths of the 'Big Four', too. It wasn't something she was willing to risk. She knew what they had to do, and she just begged the Man In The Moon that the original Guardians had done enough work to fix the teenager lying deathly still in the bed. That _she_ had enough strength and willpower to get the kid to open his eyes.

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**PLEASE, visit the ****_Prologue_**** again (Chapter 1)- I have added a new part to it, as I thought the whole Pitch thing was a little lacking on its own. :)**

A/N: Right, well, things are really starting to heat up! _You thought there was suspense before..._? **Ha!** Well, now Pitch is on his way to the Pole and is intent on ruining the plans of the Guardians, and Jamie and Baby Tooth are stuck right in the middle. Nice to have her for a visit, huh? :)

I'm going to try and start updating more often, as I just realised that (at the pace I'm going) we'll only reach the end of the second arc by Christmas! :O I want this done by then, really, and I thought it would be nice if you had the last chapter on Christmas day, but we'll have to see how that goes. I got the urge to write for the third arc all of a sudden, and have pretty much written a quarter of it in the last few days, so I'll be able to update faster when we get there! It's exciting- more suspense, more pain, more Jack beating! Ah, come on, you didn't think I'd let him off that easily, did you? May I remind you this is not listed under 'Tragedy', however, as much as it feels like it at the moment XD

Oops, I gave away too much already. Ah well! As always, read, review, follow and favourite, and you'll get a special Easter Egg from Aster! ;)  
Emily xxxx :3


	51. Jack Rejected

_'I __**know**__ so!'_ Pitch's voice instantly kindled the anger that was boiling in all of the Guardians' stomachs. _'It's the one thing I always know. People's greatest fears.'_

Around them was Pitch Black's lair- a place that they hadn't been in for many centuries. They had actually been the ones to give it to him- out of pity, over anything else. When they had last battled him, they decided that he didn't deserve to be stuck in one position like he had with Nightlight for all those years. He had been very much trapped, and they had made sure of that, unable to reach the surface, but- predictably- he'd wriggled his way out of his prison somehow. They knew he could never be killed- fear couldn't be- and so instead of letting his hatred simmer and expand in size until he finally got out again (as he inevitably would) and unleashed it all on the Guardians, they'd hoped that he would accept the huge space they had given him to live in and not hate them _so_ much. They realised what a stupid idea that had been, knowing Pitch, but still…

_The evil man's slender hands were held authoritatively behind his back as he walked away from Jack, who was creeping just behind across a stone pathway that was tilted precariously sideways. His staff in hand, he looked just about as defensive as he could possibly be. Pitch's robe fell much too loosely over his shoulders, and he turned ominously sideways to look back at the Winter Spirit with an unsurprisingly mischievous and evil expression wrinkling his features. 'Yours is that no one will ever believe in you.' His eyes glinted gold in the pale light, and a huge shadow fell over Jack as he visibly flinched. Pitch laughed mutely, and suddenly the ground collapsed beneath the Winter Spirit's feet, and he cried out in alarm as he fell down into darkness._

_He flipped over several times, or maybe the walls were flipping, crashing into a few stones, but landed on his front and fumbled around for his staff._ The Guardians were wholly confused and at least a little dizzy, but they didn't let it faze them as they concentrated on what was happening around them.

_'And worst of all,' Pitch continued with a sneer, 'you're afraid you'll never know __**why**__.' Jack panted and found his staff, scrambling back away from the direction he thought the voice was coming from. He stood unsteadily to his feet, obviously affected by what the Boogeyman had said. 'Why __**you?**__' Jack twisted towards a small archway in front of him, heading into the darkness with an arm held out to guide him, but was met with his palm flat against a cool, damp wall of rock._

_'Why were you chosen to be like this…?' Pitch continued, and Jack turned away from the wall, looking around and breathing heavily, trying hard to mask the fear that the scheming words were implanting into his mind. He looked around for Pitch, but the man wasn't there, despite his voice sounding like it was in his ear. Then the shadow of the Boogeyman appeared at Jack's left, and he glanced towards it, only to find the man of fear stood right in front of him. 'Well, fear not.' His eyes gleamed a shining grey-gold, and Jack's eyes grew wide with terror. He backed up against the cold stone and stared up, mouth gaping, clutching his staff with a vice-like grip. This was one sick game Pitch was playing. 'For the answer to that… is right here.'_

_In Pitch's hand was a golden memory box, shining in a single stream of light. He offered it to Jack, who looked at it with curiosity. The face on the end of it was a brown haired, amber eyed, grinning child. Pitch's face came into the light, too. 'Do you want them, Jack? Your memories?' he smiled suggestively, watching the temptation and the restraint and the fear and the interest flashing like a neon light at night on Jack's face. He really wasn't very good at hiding his emotions here, unlike his usual self, and Pitch loved it. Jack took in a few quick, shallow breaths, and reached out for his tooth box, but shut his bright eyes and held his left hand back._

It was then that the three Guardians who had been alive at the time realised what this was. This was Easter. They all actually stepped back a little, and Sandy looked at their owl-eyed faces with confused interest. Guilt, above _any_ other emotion, practically _glowed_ off them. This was something bad, and the little man knew it, and he almost didn't want to see what was going to happen next.

_The only thoughts that ran through Jack's head was that everything was __**there**__… Everything he ever wanted to know, right there in front of him. Being offered. Reasons for his life, for his existence, for his powers. And he wanted to know so painfully badly, how could he __**not**__ reach out for them? But no. No. He couldn't. He had to protect the Guardians, he knew if he took them there would be some kind of consequence, so he- with regret- shut his eyes and pulled away. When he next opened them to the laugh of the Boogeyman, his box was gone, along with the darkness that held it. He leaped instantly towards the moving shadows, running down a long and winding flight of stone stairs._

Tooth suddenly realised what was above their heads. In cages big enough for _people_… and she didn't even want to think about why they were big enough for people… were her tiny little fairies. They fluttered anxiously at the sight of Jack, and she found it difficult not to scold him for not helping them.

_'Everything you wanted to know…' Pitch continued, still hidden apart from a shadow of a non-existent him on the wall still holding the case. 'In this little box.' Jack pointed his staff at the wall, but didn't bother firing any ice out, as he knew it wouldn't be the least bit effective. He continued to run, pacing only with the sickening melody of Pitch's laughter._

_'Why did you end up like this?' Jack turned, his face the definition of afraid. 'Unseen. Unable to reach out to anyone.' Pitch just didn't let off. The Winter Spirit panted raggedly and, suddenly realising how his face looked, pulled on a determined expression once more, though it didn't mask his fear very well. Pitch was reading him like he was a book, and it scared him. 'You want the answers so badly, you want to grab them and fly off with them!' Jack's eyes flitted around anxiously while he watched multiple outlines of his tormentor spin around every wall around him. 'But you're afraid of what the Guardians will think. You're afraid of disappointing them. Well, let me ease your mind about one thing.'_

_Jack backed away nervously, crouching lower with every step, his mind processing and considering the words with absolute concentration. Pitch went on relentlessly. 'They'll __**never**__ accept you. Not really.'_

_Jack hunched over as he walked backwards up a short set of steps, grunting in annoyance and grabbing angrily at his head. 'Stop it! __**STOP IT!**__' he shouted out, the first words to leave his mouth in minutes. His head throbbed with the ideas that had been running through his mind without him ever being told them by someone else, and the words of the Boogeyman only seemed to confirm his fears of finally finding people and company and losing them._

_'After all, you're not one of them.' Pitch finally appeared in a thin pathway, hands behind his back once again. He was finding some messed up kind of amusement in all of this. _

_'You don't know what I am!' Jack held up his staff and gritted his teeth in pure hatred, but the Boogeyman looked unflustered. _

_'Of course I do!' Pitch sounded as if he was being quizzed on a subject he had been taught about for his entire life. 'You're Jack Frost! You make a mess wherever you go.' He gestured to the Winter Spirit._ _The Guardians saw that behind Jack was a bronzed metal version of the Globe in North's Workshop, but much smaller and very different. Where there should be ocean was simply nothing, only the countries connected in curved metal, little golden lights glimmering and rapidly going out. _Sandy looked flustered and alarmed.

_Pitch grinned devilishly, pleased with the doubt he'd put into the boy's mind. 'Why, you're doing it right now.' He tossed the memory box carelessly towards Jack, who caught it and looked at in bewilderment. _

_Jack's eyes suddenly widened as he realised what Pitch had just said. 'What did you do…?' he looked up at the grey-skinned man apprehensively, his voice timid. _

_'More to the point, Jack,' Pitch started to step backwards and away, his face easily displaying his delight in the whole situation, 'what did __**you**__ do?' he disappeared into the darkness of the path, only his glowing eyes and teeth shining for a second before he was completely gone._

_Jack stood there immobile for a split second, the lights on the globe glowing behind him and the thousands of golden memory boxes glinting in the weak light. He suddenly grew angry, and a storm settled across his face as he charged forwards. His staff glowed blue as he swung it at where Pitch had just been, grunting like a tennis player and carrying on running into the blackness. But he was in a tunnel now, a dark tunnel, and he looked around with exasperation at the sight before he tried to turn back. He was faced with a very solid wall of intricately carved and warm rock that felt nothing like what he had been so close to in the depths of Pitch's lair. He slammed his palm on it in aggravation before he once again realised what was amiss- 'Baby Tooth!' he cried, staring upwards for a brief second for any way to get back. He turned away to see what was ahead of him._

_'Happy Easter, Jack…' Pitch's voice said in a low, echoing tone, and Jack squinted to understand what was in front of him. There were eggshells- thousands of them- littering the grass beneath his feet, one stone Golem broken and decayed on the side. Moss coated everything, and the glimmers of colour on the ground looked so out of place and so wrong, he couldn't shake the horrible understanding of what had happened while he was away._

_'No…' Jack gasped weakly, and headed off down the ethereally lit tunnel. _Burrow_, he might add._ Warren. _He kept running, desperate, staring every which way and down every burrow that split into different directions._ _He kept repeating 'no' like it was a mantra that kept him going, occasionally slamming into a dead end face first and groaning out in frustration before retracing his steps and trying another way. It was minutes- whole minutes- before he finally found a trace of the Guardians. Tooth had been shedding feathers now that they were losing believers at a rapid rate, and a couple lay motionless on the ground, leading away into a European tunnel. Jack followed it with haste he didn't know he possessed, watching out for any more multi-coloured plumage until it directed him towards a recently battle-torn tunnel headed for England. He ran along it, tears brimming in his eyes and constantly cursing and insulting himself._ Through his mutters the Guardians caught occasional words, listening to the young Spirit telling himself all of this was his fault, that he was a let-down, that he didn't deserve any of this. It made them inwardly cringe.

_Finally, Jack Frost reached a burrow that led directly from the Warren and up into beautiful sunlight. He thought it was almost a miracle that he had found them- they could have been anywhere in the world, so he just hoped they were all alright. The crushing pain tightened around his chest and he panted through it, the guilt and shame and pure hatred of himself causing his lungs to contract awkwardly. He came out into a beautiful English forest, the sun glittering through the trees like shattered glass onto the luscious grass below his feet, but he didn't pay any mind to it. He stared around until he heard voices, and headed towards them cautiously, afraid that the three remaining Guardians could be trapped or injured. _

_Bunny came into view._ Bunny himself blinked wearily at the shared memory, briskly wiping away a tear that threatened to fall from his ruined holiday. This day had almost killed him. Sandy stared apprehensively, unsure of why his three friends all looked so weary and distraught, but the fact that he couldn't find any sense of the dagger gave him a clue. He knew this was Easter, at least.

_'I can't believe it.' A young girl said in obviously upset tones, hopping down from the bench she was sat on, her pink wellies dangling off the edge._

_'I-I know!' Bunny said in a breathless, concerned way, holding up an equally pink egg with a forced smile._

_'There's no such thing as the Easter Bunny.' The child continued and turned away, and Jack continued to step closer._

_'What?' Bunny's face completely dropped. 'No. Wrong! Not-not true!' he turned to another boy walking his way, holding his basket firmly by his side. 'I'm right in front of you, mate!'_

_Then the worst thing a Spirit could ever think of happened. The child passed right through Bunny, leaving trails of blue light for a second before they dissipated. His face completely fell in shock- it had been many, many years since he'd been passed through, and the sheer nothingness of it sent shivers and breathlessness all the way through him._

_'They don't see me.' Bunny stated bluntly, gasping, and his resolve visibly deteriorated. 'They don't see me…' he said again in almost disbelief, crumbling to the ground and pushing his ears flat against his head._

_Jack finally stopped. He saw what had just happened, he knew what it felt like, and he couldn't help but feel absolutely terrible about it. He _knew_ it was his fault, he'd accepted that already. His eyebrows curled upwards in yearning concern as he watched the Tooth Fairy come to console the Easter Bunny. He just couldn't… he couldn't do anything. This was all his fault._

_'Jack!' North called out, finally noticing the presence of the young Guardian. 'Where __**were**__ you?' he looked down, motioning helplessly with his swords. 'The Nightmares attacked the tunnels. They smashed __**every**__ egg, crushed __**every**__ basket- __**nothing**__ made it to the surface.' He dug the points into the soft earth, and Jack was beating his stupid self to death in his head._

_'Jack!' Tooth called, too, fluttering over and losing a few feathers on the way. He simply looked at her with a blank expression, completely uncertain of how to respond. She suddenly gasped and her face grew shocked. 'Where did you get that?'_

_Jack fumbled with the clinking memory box in his palm, staring down at it and attempting to get the right words out of his mouth, failing miserably. 'I was… It's…'_

_'Where's Baby Tooth?!' Tooth cried out in concern, cutting Jack off and looking around for her fluttering wings. Jack's mouth moved, and this time not even a breath left his pale lips. 'Oh Jack… What have you done?' she brought her hands to her mouth and forced her tears away._

_'__**That **__is why you weren't here?' North suddenly looked up with accusatory blue orbs. 'You were with __**Pitch?!**__' he said angrily, stepping closer. It was then that Jack fully felt how intimidating the ex-bandit could be. His eyes were bloodshot and tired._

_'No! Listen, listen…' Jack huffed out a distressed breath and looked down at the grass, hoping that somewhere there in the earth he could find the words to explain everything. 'I'm sorry!' his voice almost cracked, and the truth of it was in his tone. 'I didn't mean for this to happen!' his eyes flicked between the Guardian of Wonder and the Guardian of Memories, begging them to forgive him, to understand. He couldn't lose them, not now… He couldn't. Not when they started to feel like family. His piercing blue eyes were pleading, breaking, but they were ignored._

_'He has to go.' Bunny emerged from behind the Winter Spirit, his fists clenched tight, his voice surprisingly controlled and firm. North and Tooth's faces looked completely torn, but they didn't protest, and that was enough to let Jack know that they agreed. _

_'What?' Jack turned around and faced the rabbit, his face scrunched and completely in denial of what the Guardian of Hope had just said. No. __**No.**__ Pitch had told him. Pitch can't have been right…_ They'll never accept you, not really. _The words swarmed around in his head, destroying him from the inside out. He thought he'd found a family, he thought he'd found love. _

_'We should __**NEVER**__ have trusted you!' Bunny screamed now, unable to hold in his anger. He lifted his fist ready to strike Jack across the face, but just managed to hold himself back. Jack squeezed his eyes together and flinched backwards, ready for the attack until it never came. He stepped away, staring in disbelief and fear at his so-called friend._

The present Bunny shut his eyes tight, refusing to relive this. He couldn't. Not after he'd been so stupid. Sandy fumed.

_Bunny let his hands drop down, realising what he had just threatened but not seeming to care. 'Easter is new beginnings, new life.' He flicked his eyes around for answers to his questions, trying desperately what he had just lost. 'Easter's about hope! And now it's gone…' he sighed and turned away, unable to look at the Winter Spirit. His back hunched over in absolute hopelessness, Jack watched the Guardian walk away from him, his eyes glistening with tears._

_This is my fault…_

_Jack turned quickly to North and Tooth, begging and pleading and downright giving himself to them, showing them that he's sorry just through his expression. It looked like he could break down any second, and it killed them all to see it again. They couldn't make eye contact. They couldn't even look at him._

_North and Tooth both turned away, hiding themselves from Jack and completely rejecting him. He thought he'd had a home. He thought he'd finally found people who would pay attention to him, and just as he feared, just as Pitch said, they were giving up on him. He looked painfully down at the little wooden doll of North that he'd kept, its huge blue eyes shining up through the glaze at him, and considered it for a minute, before realising he just had to go. He tossed it into the grass. They wanted him gone. And that was that. He flew off in a flurry of wind, leaving behind the solemn expressions of North and Tooth, heading straight South._

Sandy was so angry, lakes could be made out of the dream sand that spewed from his ears. The three other Guardians didn't dare look at him they were so ashamed. He blurted angrily in dream sand images "_you didn't even give him the chance to explain! He could have been KILLED with Pitch, and you didn't let him tell you what had happened!? He didn't mean it! I can't believe I KNOW you all sometimes!_" And with that, the Sandman turned his back on them just as they had done to Jack.

'Sanderson…' North said softly, pleading just the same as Jack.

Sandy just shook his head. North only used his name in serious situations, and this was about as serious as it could get.

They were all being taken with Jack now, even though two of them didn't have the ability to fly. _He flew high up where there was little air, looking down at the land below him only briefly while continuing on. 'Wind…' Jack's voice cracked in his throat as he spoke, and he was determined not to let the frailty he was feeling seep out into his voice. 'You know where to go.' Just as he had asked, the Wind picked up and took him faster and faster South, the world blurring around them until they finally reached the Pole. Jack's depression had swiftly and surely transformed into anger now, and he landed in a snow drift clumsily. The Wind picked him up and brushed him back down. 'Wind… Wind come on… Just leave me alone for a while, okay?'_

_He tilted his head downwards and sideways as if listening carefully._ The Guardians were intrigued- they'd never known Jack spoke to the Wind, let alone that it understood him and possibly even spoke for itself. _'Yeah, I will. Now, get home, you don't belong this South.' His hair was tousled gently in a light breeze, but he threw his hand up as if to swat away a fly. '__**GO!**__' he said angrily now, and it left in a huff. He sighed and ground his teeth together, and headed off to a tall looking ice cliff in the foggy expanse of freezing wasteland, pulling out the memory box that he now despised so greatly._

_Jack ran and ran, pounding his bare feet against the hard ice, hoping that he would feel something- cold, heat, pain, anything. There was nothing. He wanted to punish himself, punch something and get angry, but he couldn't. Tears fell quickly down his paled cheeks, but he forced them away and stopped himself. They didn't even sting or burn in the freezing environment around him. He ran and ran so fast that his foot snagged in a snow drift that covered a small crevice in the ice, and he yelped out before crashing face first into the ground below him. He groaned into the white powdered land and just curled in on himself angrily before getting to his shaky feet and continuing to sprint to the edge of the ice cliff._

The three Guardians who'd pushed Jack away forced back the cries of regret that dared to attempt to leave their mouths, and Sandy just stood, ashamed of what they'd done, until everything dissolved away.

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What? What's this? But it's _SUNDAY_! I know, I know, but it's the half term here in Britain so I get a week off and I thought "ah why not?" So here you go, early update! :)

Obviously this is only a retell, so nothing particularly special, but still. Eh, I have nothing more to say really, so here we go- as usual, follow, favourite and review! I LOVE you guys! Come on, let's get this to 100 reviews ^_^

Emily xxxxx


	52. Megan

Quick reminder: I'm still in my bunker. There are ten doors, and each one is bolted twenty times.

* * *

The whiteness of the changing memory flashed brightly then became blurred darkness. Jack could be heard breathing heavily and sighing, along with someone else's smaller breaths. _He blinked open his eyes and sighed tiredly, and that was when the whole picture came into view. It must have been the small hours of the morning, the darkness all around heavy and the night air so cold it was frigid. Of course, Jack's breath didn't swirl in clouds of steam and he didn't notice the temperature. He pulled the young girl in his arms closer to himself, her dirty blonde hair tickling his face as she shifted in sleep with him. _

_Megan elicited a heavy sigh and grumbled under her breath as Jack's change in position woke her from her slumber. She turned on her side to face him, her eyes still shut tight and her eyebrows curling in frustration. Jack looked down at her as she nuzzled her face into his chest, feeling the warmth that she gave off despite the freezing temperatures and the snow around them, amazed at how a body could do that. For him, his cold body was the only one he'd ever been close to and able to feel, so the sensation of warm blood pulsing next to him was certainly different. _

_'Mm…' Megan groaned and gripped Jack's jumper in her fist, twisting it under her fingers. 'Jack…?' she said softly and peered up at him through tired, deep blue eyes._

_'Yeah?' Jack replied gently. 'You okay?'_

_'Mhm.' Megan bunched up her fists and rubbed them into her eyes. 'Bad dream…'_

_Some kind of instinct inside Jack told him exactly how to act. He pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her, one of his palms tenderly cupping her head. 'Well, it was just a dream, and it's over now. I'm here, you've got me.' He whispered into her hair while rubbing soothing circles with his thumb on her back._

_Megan made no noise, but trembled and hiccupped as she started to lightly cry. 'Hey, hey!' Jack chuckled. 'It's okay! It's okay! Everything's gonna be fine. Shh…' he gripped her even tighter, minding the heavy footsteps of a drunk man on his way home. _

The Guardians watched with fondness as Jack held the little girl firmly, calming her down until the tears ceased and she relaxed once more. _'I guess you don't want to talk about it.' Jack grinned despite nobody being there to see it. Megan giggled slightly into his chest and shut her eyes tight, gripping onto his jumper as she hugged him back. _

_Then Jack did something nobody was expecting. _

_He started to sing._

_First it was short little hums, lulling and quiet. Then, it progressed into a worded song. None of them recognised it, but presumed it must have been something he'd been sung when he was young or had heard off another parent. His singing was low and rhythmic, just like his ordinary voice, but it was so mild and relaxing that they barely believed it came from his mouth. There was something extremely sad about the lullaby, as if it were a mourning song, and Jack captured the lamenting feel of it perfectly._

_'Drift away to lands up high  
Into golden fields of rye  
Like a snowflake from the sky  
Drift away, close your eyes._

_A falling snowflake drifts down  
Swirls and dances all around  
To the wind forever bound  
On its journey to the ground._

_One in a million  
Unique in every way  
Watch it float, watch it run  
On just another winter day._

_A falling snowflake drifts down  
Does not sigh a single sigh  
Knowing it is doomed to die  
When it meets the ground._

_Drift away to lands up high  
Into golden fields of rye  
Like the snowflake from the sky  
Drift away, close your eyes.'_

_By the time Jack's voice lowered and stopped altogether, Megan was breathing heavily and was fast asleep once again. For a reason unknown to Jack, a single tear rolled sideways down his face and he felt an overwhelming sadness creep over him like a looming shadow. He drew Megan closer to himself and let the rattling breaths he took come and go in due course, his eyes wide and unfocused. _

_He tried so hard to remember where he'd learnt that song, where he'd sung it before, because it felt so familiar and so damn_ comfortable _coming out of his mouth. Megan had been opening up all these long forgotten walkways to emotions and memories and behaviours that he never remembered learning or using, and for him that was extremely unnerving. It was like they were on the tip of his tongue- somebody's name, somebody's voice was on the tip of his tongue, but he could never, ever- no matter how hard he tried- put his finger on just who that person was. _

_'Look…' Jack said quietly, staring up through the thick clouds to where he could see the light of the Moon. 'I know you don't want to talk to me, but… I have to understand. Megan, she… she reminds me of someone, and I-I can't figure out who. Please, if you answer one thing, let this be it. I just… I just need to know.' He stared up, up through the clouds and much higher, but still he heard nothing. Jack sighed heavily and shook his head in distress before settling down again and shutting his eyes. _

_'I'll work it out one day, help or no help.' He kissed Megan's head delicately and puffed a cold breath into her hair. 'Something… Someone, Megan. Someone to do with… with flowers.' And with that, the world disappeared into darkness as Jack fell asleep. _

_Only seconds later, London appeared again. It was early morning- hours had passed since he was last awake, but it had felt like mere seconds due to his dreamless sleep. It was a little after sunrise, the pale clouds still washed with pinks and yellows. Jack blinked awake and rubbed his left eye with his knuckle, then propped himself up slightly, careful not to disturb the sleeping child in his hold. He looked around blearily._

_The city was already alive. People bustled past the two youngsters lying on the ground, who to them looked like only one. Men in suits and huge coats with briefcases took long strides as they checked their watches to see if they were late for work, and women started the housework. Jack huffed out a breath, still angry about gender roles. He always would be. A baby wailed in one of the houses across the street, and a few carts were being loaded with goods like colourful fruits and vegetables to sell in the market only a few streets away. He shifted a little, his body numb where Megan had been resting on him. _

_Jack huffed out another heavy exhale and lay back down, letting all the sounds of London comfort him. He thought about the night before and groggily rolled one shoulder to get rid of the knots that had formed there. It wasn't like he wasn't used to just sleeping on the floor or in a tree, and at least this time he'd bothered to pile up some snow for the sake of the six year old- he must do that more often. It had certainly saved him a long list of aches and pains this morning. Normally, he was too tired when he did decide to sleep- as it was so infrequent- that he just flopped down by his lake, getting to which was enough effort in the first place. _

_Something was wrong, however- off. Jack felt it in the air. He rubbed his eyes with his whole palm this time, attempting to get rid of the sleepiness that held him captive. Despite the fact that he now felt as if he had at least a hundred times the amount of energy he had possessed before sleeping, it was always difficult waking up. Due to the sporadic sleeping pattern of Spirits- or him, at least- when he settled down for slumber, he usually didn't wake up for days. Knowing he had a child next to him had changed that, however. _

_'Megan…' Jack suddenly noticed that it had snowed last night, while he was asleep. At least an inch of the white powder coated the two figures, so he brushed it off them both. He wondered why he had let it fall, what had caused it. He didn't remember having any nightmares. Maybe it wasn't him, maybe it was just the work of plain and simple weather- many of the other Spirits mistakenly believed that Jack controlled all of the snowfall across the world, but that simply wasn't true. Sometimes, nobody was responsible for it. Sometimes it was just the weather. How else would it be snowing in different countries at exactly the same time?_

_Jack lifted his hand again, wiping off the final dregs of snow from Megan's coat. When it stirred her slightly sideways, she didn't seem at all bothered. In fact, she hadn't seemed bothered by any movement or sound whatsoever since he had woken. It didn't concern him, however, so he just lay down a little longer to fight off the sleep that addled his mind. It felt like he'd been heavily drugged for at least another ten minutes, and the town got even busier. That's when he decided it was time for them to get up and start moving._

_Megan was still facing Jack, her nose pushed up against the crook of his neck and nestled in the space just under his collarbone. She seemed extremely comfortable. Jack didn't want to move her, but knew they had to before he started getting stepped through. 'Megan.' He jostled her side gently. 'Megan, time to get up. Let's get you home, huh?' he shook her a little bit more this time, then stopped._

_Jack became horribly aware of how still the girl was next to him. He pushed her away slightly, looking down at her face. He gulped down non-existent spit in his mouth, absorbing every detail of her expression. It was placid and soft, her eyes fluttering randomly and her lips murmuring every couple of seconds. The more Jack stared, the more he realised that he was wrong. Her eyelids hadn't fluttered, her lips hadn't trembled, and she hadn't moved. He watched and stared and glared unmoving at the unmoving thin face just next to him. Jack's breathing quickened painfully in his chest as the crushing pain came on like a sudden storm. He kept watching because he just couldn't bear to do anything else._

_Jack took in the milky pallor of her skin, her few freckles much more visible on her sullen toned face. He absorbed the blue tinge to her lips, the lack of rosiness in her cheeks, and dared them to change. Dared them with all that he could muster to just _change._ For the paleness to glow coloured, for the cold colour to grow pink. With all of his being, he willed her to change. _

_Jack kept staring. Jack didn't stop staring. Not for a long time._

'No…' Tooth gasped out the words as she clasped her hands over her mouth. 'No…' The other Guardians were not willing to move. Not until their fears were dissipated. Now they could hear beating- Jack's heart. He could hear it in his ears, thumping erratically.

_'Megan.' Jack said more urgently this time. 'Megan, wake up.' He shook her arm gently, then pulled away. _

_A single waved cluster of dirty blonde, sandy hair fell across her closed eyes, as if she had positioned it there herself. Jack lifted a shaking hand and brushed it away, cupping her cheek carefully in his palm and directing her face towards his. He forced her neck to tilt upwards, imagining her eyes flickering open and staring up at him. The deep blue he had briefly grown to know would be there, the turquoise, the golden flecks that littered her irises glittering in the pale winter sunlight. Except they weren't. _

_They never opened. _

_He never saw them again._

_The bruise on her cheek was so deep and bright, yellows and blues and purples all mixing into one like ink. Jack glanced at it before pushing it out of his mind, absently rubbing the pad of his thumb against her cheekbone. He no longer felt the warmth in her skin. It felt like his. A small swirling pattern of frost spread under his touch, but he didn't stop._

_Jack finally managed to move more. 'Please…' he whispered unsteadily, and slid his hand down her face, to her neck. He held his fingers there, pressing them into her tender flesh, searching, begging. He took his other hand, not quite believing what he felt- rather, didn't feel- and grabbed the small hand that Megan wasn't lying on. He gripped at her limp wrist, pushing down on the blue lines just beneath her skin. _

_Finally, after what felt like forever, Jack gasped in a deep breath and pulled Megan in close. Droplets cascaded down his cheeks, he kissed her head, then inhaled shakily. He started to shiver- actually shiver. He barely blinked. He listened to his heartbeat. He wriggled his bare toes. _

_Jack laid her onto her back. Without him fully realising, the clouds broke and the sky gave in, dropping heavy loads of snow over London. The air was thick and filled with cold. Searing cold. The freezing temperatures came on suddenly, and people shook in the weather. Jack lay his hand across her forehead, feeling and soaking in the sensation of a person the same coolness as him. He broke all touch for the first time since falling asleep for the first time, and when he reached down for one last touch, he started to cry even more. _

_Jack couldn't touch her. When he reached out a hand, his hand passed straight through Megan, and he scrambled back away in shock, straight into the pathway of a woman walking the pavement. He gasped as she passed through him too, the sickening separation of everything that made him Jack Frost almost comforting for once. He wanted to be anyone but Jack Frost at this exact moment. Anyone._

_Jack stood up onto his weak legs. His arms fell by his sides. He looked down on the young girl who lay so still in front of him, taking a mental picture of her. Her almost-black thick coat. Her faded red, scuffed shoes. The several skirts layered on top of each other, ripped at the hems. Her bright red woollen hat. The one plait that had stayed, loose and matted. The other half of her hair that fell in splayed waves onto the pavement. Her simple, young face. Her peaceful expression, as if she were simply sleeping. He choked on nothing._

_He briefly thought about trying to gain someone's attention, but knowing it would be fruitless, Jack just backed away to the other side of the road. He looked at the heap of clothes on the pavement opposite, breathing heavily and shaking his head slightly. _

_With resolute finality, Jack turned his back and ran. He took off into the sky, leaving behind a snowstorm he didn't mean to create. He flew high- higher than he thought he'd ever been, until everything was white, and the air was thin, and the urge to fall away into nothing was intense._

_The memory disappeared to the soundtrack of Jack Frost screaming._

* * *

...I don't think I really know what to say. What can I say?

**Sorry.**

I suppose that's the best I can do.

There is a... way around this... I am considering it, but I doubt I'll go with it. Actually, I might just go off myself- save you all the hassle of breaking into the bunker.  
May I just say- on a happier note- that I am extremely excited about the attention this is getting (**_85_** REVIEWS OMFG). You are all amazing- I am loving your reviews so much (is it just me, or are they getting longer and more frequent?), so please don't stop! I'm expecting a lot of very angry reviews for this chapter. If you don't know what to say, but hate me, just review with !- I will understand. :) Excuse the chapter name as well- I just didn't know what to call it.

I love you all, I really do, despite this disgusting chapter,

Emily xxxxxx *wraps you in a blanket and gives you all the boxsets of your favourite TV show, a hot chocolate with marshmallows, and a huge hug*


	53. Oath of the Guardians

_The bright and smiling face of The Man In The Moon shone down through the thin, pink tinted clouds, grinning at the immortals below him with glee. Pitch was gone, and Jack Frost finally understood his centre. The sun was rising higher by the minute, and the gentle dawn light settled softly over the Winter Spirit's skin as he looked inquisitively up at the face staring down at him. He smiled slightly, a flash of his pearly teeth shining through his lips, and was close to laughter he was so happy. _

The Guardians smiled, finally relieved of the dark and depressing memories that had fallen before this one. They breathed a sigh of respite, and Sandy closed his eyes at the sensation of the dagger close by- this one had not been tainted and he couldn't be happier for its presence, despite the horrible damage it was inflicting on the immortal whose mind they were invading. He quickly found it, no trouble at all- it wasn't disguised this time. It was stuck into the ground at the edge of the lake, only the hilt visible out of the frosted earth- the Sandman destroyed it instantly, wanting to relish this memory while it lasted. They hadn't had such good luck with Jack's mind recently.

_Tooth giggled happily from behind, the sound of her wings fluttering getting closer and closer. She quickly swooped in, scooped Jack up into a tight hug in celebration, and spun them around in the air. They pulled away and held each other's stares for a second too long before one of the little fairies came up and told Tooth off in their babbling language, probably something along the lines of "keep it together! Let's not disgrace the uniform!" Jack laughed fondly and held up a hand to the tiny fairy as the bigger one fluttered away to hover behind the three other Guardians._

_'Are you ready now, Jack?' North asked, rubbing his hands together knowingly. 'To make it official!' he held out his arms as the others gathered around him excitedly._

_Jack looked at them apprehensively, seemingly mulling over the decision in his head. He swung his staff up, and his mouth cracked into a smile as he suddenly realised what exactly it was North was talking about. An Elf on the ice of the lake of Burgess looked wholly unamused at the idea of the Winter Spirit turning down the offer again, slamming his tiny trumpet into his palm and pulling a threatening face at the teenager. _

_Jack made no protest. This was taken as a yes._

_A Yeti walked smoothly over, a huge brown book with a golden embossed '_G_' right in the middle and patterns in the corners of the cover too. Jack couldn't help but think that North had had this planned from the beginning- how else would he have the huge thing so quickly after Pitch's defeat? Well, he could have used a snow globe of course, but it seemed unlikely. 'Then is time you take Oath.' the jolly Russian opened the volume and flipped a couple of pages. Sandy silently clapped his hands in glee, Tooth still flitted around, and Bunny- amazingly- actually smiled like a dope. Maybe, he even looked proud._

_Jack looked quickly down at the huge book that he briefly thought could easily crush him, took a shallow but audible breath in, and smiled even brighter as he let it out._

_'Will you, Jack Frost,' North began as the children from Burgess all gathered behind Jack and the Guardians, alongside a couple of huge stone Eggs, a few Yetis, and lots of Elves and Easter Eggs, 'vow to watch over the children of the world, to guard them with your life- their hopes, their wishes and their dreams- for they are __**all**__ that we have, __**all**__ that we are, and __**all**__ that we will ever be?'_

_Jack twisted around to face Jamie, smiling lightly, apparently needing confirmation that he was making the right choice from his first believer in a hundred years. Jamie's amber eyes shone in the half light, and he grinned fondly while nodding his head. Jack turned back to the rising sun and the Guardians, of which he was about to become one. 'I will.' he said, his toothy smile and bright blue eyes lighting up the whole scene even more._

_'Then congratulations, Jack Frost, for you are now,' North began, closing his huge book with a dull thump and lifting his arms, 'and forever more… a __**Guardian.**__' He bowed his head a little in recognition of Jack's dramatic climb up the immortal status ladder._

_And just like that, Jack was a Guardian._

_Pride blossomed in his stomach, and he finally felt as if he was going to fit in somewhere._

_Jack's lips curled in utter delight and he gripped his staff tightly as he absorbed the scene that he would forever remember in front of him. The others around him exploded in glee, whooping, cheering and laughing on the frozen lake in the early morning. _

_North walked up to him, praising him and picking him off the ground unexpectedly before violently shaking his scrawny body. 'Krasnov!' North boomed to a very bewildered Jack Frost, just before planting two kisses on each of his cheeks. When he was placed down, he just looked up in shock and chuckled, and North threw his head back in amusement._

_'That's my boy!' Bunny could be heard saying just behind, and Jack couldn't help but feel_ "he really did care". _Everyone was celebrating- an Elf copied its boss, loudly kissing another, then being punched in the face by the unamused friend. The eight mini-fairies that were present made the shape of a love heart in their flying formation, and Tooth came up to them with arms crossed, giggling. 'Keep it together, girls!' she said softly, waggling a finger as the one at the point fainted slightly._

_The kids all high-fived, shouting 'yeah!' and crying out jovial expressions. The sound of jingling bells echoed, and everyone on the lake looked up as North's sleigh was led back down onto the ice by the Reindeer- everything miraculously fixed up. The children ran over to it as it came to a standstill and a brightly coloured Elf grabbed an egg that had been in the path of the heavy hooves._

_'Everyone loves the sleigh.' Bunny leaned closer to North and smiled, finally settling their arguments- at least, for now. _

_'Time to go.' North laid a hand on Jack's shoulder, who had been watching the children with elation. Sandy promptly hovered a little above the ground, summoning sand into his fingertips. He shot streams up into the sky above them, the golden light exploding as rumbling fireworks in the chilly air. The children all gasped, quietly exclaiming 'whoa!' The bright sand rained down like snowy glitter, floating and twinkling down over everyone. _

_'Happy Easter, y'little ankle biter.' Bunny said fondly, handing over a colourful egg to little Sophie. 'I'm gunna miss ya.'_

_Sophie giggled and patted the rabbit's nose. 'Bye, bye Bunny.'_

_Jack spared a long glance at Jamie. The boy looked confused as he realised what was happening. 'You're leaving?' he said desperately, stepping closer to meet the Winter Spirit in the middle._ The Guardians ventured to guess that Jack looked slightly guilty. _'But what if Pitch comes back? What if we stop believing again? If I can't see you…' Jamie looked down at Jack's feet nervously._

_'Hey, hey!' Jack chuckled lightly, crouching down and gripping the child's shoulder. 'Slow down, slow down! Are you telling me you stop believing in the moon when the sun comes up?'_

_'No.' Jamie said as if it were obvious- which, of course, it was._

_'Okay, well, do ya stop believing in the sun when clouds block it out?' Jack asked again, pointing up at the sky._

_'No.' Jamie chuckled and kicked his feet absently._

_'We'll always be there, Jamie.' Jack said firmly, looking directly into the boy's eyes. 'And now, we'll always be here.' He pointed to the believer's heart. Jamie looked down confused, then back up. 'Which… kinda makes you a Guardian too.' Jamie smiled, amazed at the idea of that. They shared a kind expression for a second, before Jack stood to his full height and turned back to the sleigh._

_Jamie looked frustrated, contemplating something in his head. 'Jack!' he called out, then started to run before the Guardians could leave. Jack turned to the call of his name, his expression dropping when he saw the boy sprinting right at him. He lifted his arms, waiting for the horrible sensation of being passed through with an alarmed expression._

_But it never came._

_Instead, Jack had to huff out a breath, still in disbelief, as a solid body actually_ hit _him for once. He just gasped, then leaned down and wrapped an arm around the child to hug him back. The complete relief and delight was evident on his face as he shut his eyes and just enjoyed the contact he so very rarely had the pleasure of indulging in. _

_The Guardians then and now all looked on warmheartedly._

_Jack broke the embrace, hopped back over to the sleigh and jumped onto the streamlined blade at the edge. He shared looks with all of the children who ran after the moving sleigh as they took off, waving and cheering. They flew high up into the sky, and Jack leaped to the front- where North was stood- and nodded at him. Similarly, he went to each Guardian and grinned in joy, waiting for them to accept him into their group with just a simple gesture. He jumped up onto the back edge of the magical carriage, smiling at the little fairy that hovered next to him._

_Jack sparked a beautifully designed snowflake into existence that shimmered delicately in the gentle blue light around them, letting it take off with the wind and beaming a smile as if staring into a camera, and as soon as it disappeared into the distance, the memory flashed white and dissipated into silence._

* * *

I'm really sorry this is late- yesterday I was just swamped with work, as I had a deadline today. Sadly, even though I stayed up until 1am, the deadline was pushed back until next Friday, leaving a very annoyed Emily :(  
I hope I can try and update sometime within the next couple of days, as I know this is also a very short chapter and am hyper-aware of how slow going this fic is at the moment.

I do really have to **thank you** all now- we're nearly at **_!100!_** reviews, and that is just... that is just incredible. I love you all so much. You all make me so happy, I just cried tears of joy _and_ sorrow at the last chapter- joy because of your wonderful reviews, and sorrow because of what I did both to characters and to you all... I cannot say sorry enough. I'm still in my bunker, probably will be for another chapter *peeks out* well, seems pretty clear, but I don't know... I'm afraid you'll all suddenly explode on me O.o *closes doors*

Many thanks again, everything you all do for this story is truly humbling and wonderful. You're amazing readers!  
Emily xxx :)

P.S: I feel like I haven't done this scene justice, as it actually brings everything together for me. It's a very meaningful part of the film, and I'm not in a particularly good writing mood tonight. I feel as if I couldn't capture all of the emotions and subtle movements that mean a lot in my work, so let me know what you think.


	54. Alone In The World

The Workshop of the North Pole was absolutely buzzing with activity. Yetis hustled around, some still working, most running wildly to gain some sort of control over the madness of the place- they'd all seen the shadows coming. They were all watching them approach with dread dropping like a stone in their stomachs.

In the Infirmary, things were much the same. Jack Frost lay exactly as he had been for days now, and the four other Guardians were all snuggled up in armchairs around him. Each were deeply asleep, in crevices of the teenager's mind they would rather not have to explore. Jamie still sat by the metal bed, listening intently to what the Yetis and little Tooth Fairy were telling him.

One Yeti, Phil, was holding the notebook and pencil in his huge hands. It hadn't taken long for Jamie to realise that this was the Yeti that had signed his book a few months before, and he'd run for a big hug as soon as it had crossed his mind. Currently, Baby Tooth was chirping something to the fuzzy creature, and they seemed to be debating.

'Guys?' Jamie offered, having not been involved in the conversation for at least three minutes now. The Yeti and small Tooth Fairy peered up at him and fell silent, realising that their bickering wasn't going to get them anywhere. 'Come on, tell me what we have to do!' he glanced worriedly out of the window, hyper aware of the speed the shadows were approaching. They had to do something- and do something _fast_.

Phil scribbled down on the paper several basic words, conscious of the need for as little writing as possible when trying to explain something clearly. On the pad was simply "_Wait for Jack to wake. If we wake, all could die. If not by time shadows come, we fight to protect until he wakes. Getting him and Guardians up only last resort_."

Jamie swallowed a lump in his throat at the mention that they could all die. How could he, a fairy, some elves and Yetis be expected to protect the Guardians from the Boogeyman? It was a daunting task, to say the least. He looked at his motionless friend next to him, and inhaled a shaky breath. They had to do it. They had no other choice.

_"We will be fine. Trust us. You must go."_

'How many times, Phil, no!' Jamie sighed. 'I'm staying here, no matter what! I can help!'

Phil rubbed his furry face down with his fist. The kid wasn't about to go home, and he knew that if he sent him back to Burgess he'd only find some way to return, kicking and screaming. Another Yeti, a brown one, walked up with a sheet of paper with orders on it. Phil checked it and signed it, garbling out directions and where to set certain things up. Currently, the whole infirmary was being packed full of lights- as many as possible. They knew this would make it obvious where they were to Pitch, but there was simply no time for them to set up any decoy rooms. They wanted this room to be as light as possible, therefore as difficult as possible for the Boogeyman to get in. Every inch of the room was hopefully to be lit up, at least to stall for time. All Yetis were equipped with torches, ready to shine them whenever an emergency light was needed. Unfortunately, the sturdy glass cabinet that held both Jack's staff and the wooden chest with the two memory boxes inside had to be taken away. It had cast small shadows, and they decided it would be better out in the open but guarded by a lot of Yetis. Many now surrounded them, where they were currently positioned on the floor, bright light flooding the objects.

Pitch was drawing ever nearer.

'Are we nearly ready?' Jamie asked loudly, nearly having to shout over the din of the room. Phil grunted in confirmation, and Baby Tooth came to settle on the child's shoulder. 'Alright then. I guess that all there's left to do is wait.'

* * *

The Guardians all waited with baited breath for the new memory to appear. So far, they could only hear and smell- a gentle breeze, the soft cracking of newly formed ice, and the rushing scent of pine. What appeared in front of them after a few seconds wasn't quite what they were expecting.

_Jack was stood on the frozen lake of Burgess, his hair white and his eyes blue. Except he wore his human clothes- a dirty stone coloured V-neck shirt, a brown waistcoat that was obviously too small for him, the same brown trousers he wore to the day, and a brown cloak around his neck and shoulders. He wore no shoes, as usual. He stumbled slightly on his feet, gaining his balance as if he were a new born lamb. He looked down at his hands, studying them intensely- almost like he'd never seen them before._

_It was cold- very cold. The night was biting, and the forest loomed dark and eerie on all sides of the lake. The bare trees were heavily laden with pale snow that glistened in the moonlight, a few branches that had broken off lying flat on the ice or even frozen into the water. Underneath the ice, the earth and mud could be seen foggily through the thick layer of frost, occasional cracks and lines threatening to give way beneath him, although they seemed wholly unaffected by his feathery weight on them. The Man In The Moon smiled down from above- the Guardians could see him- and lit up the whole area. He was huge that night, and the sky was so clear every little star could be seen._

_Despite Jack being- well,_ Jack_- there was something significantly different about him that wasn't his clothes. He looked younger. His face held no pain lines that he now possessed, nor did he look weary or tired. He looked more like his human self than they'd ever seen him outside of his memories. He looked new._

_Jack lifted his right hand to his face, brushing his lips with his fingertips as if pulling something away from his face. He quickly turned with wide eyes, staring up at the Moon innocently, searching. His eyebrows twitched slightly in questioning before they relaxed and his eyes widened into a soft expression of silent understanding. He looked down and attempted to take a step forward, but his foot slipped and he struggled to keep his balance._

'Kid looks like bloody Bambi!' Bunny chortled. 'What, do his legs not work?' Nobody responded.

_Jack huffed out a little laugh, correcting himself and taking a few steps forwards as he looked up and around in wonder. His foot unexpectedly hit something that crackled hollowly against the ice, and he looked down instantly. Intrigued, he tapped the stick with his toes and watched with confusion as blue frost spread through the crevices in the wood._

'Oh my…' Tooth exclaimed suddenly, a smile lighting up her features. The other Guardians looked at her, still unaware of what this memory was. 'This is… This is when Jack first became Jack Frost. This is the day he was chosen!'

They were all elated. If they'd only known what had fallen before this, they may not have been so happy.

_Jack bent down and picked the staff up into his hands. Without any seemingly logical reason, he suddenly shielded his face upon instinct and the end of the stick slammed down into the ice. What had actually happened was that he had felt the power inside it that flooded through him and connected them together, and it was too much to handle. From the area where it hit, beautiful fern frost patterns spread across the already smooth ice, webbing away from him. Jack looked at them then back at the staff in utter fascination- he handled it gently, frost glittering across the brown where his fingers touched. He smiled brightly, staring at it, until he promptly stood to his feet. Jack looked around and walked cautiously over to a small tree at the edge of the lake._

_With the_ 'G' _shaped end of the crook, Jack lightly tapped the trunk. Instantly, a puff of cold steam billowed and the fern patterns erupted across the surface of the tree, steadily climbing and swirling around it. He lifted a hand to it and touched it in amazement, his face blank and captivated. He grinned and then turned to the tree next to him, of similar size, and tapped that one too. He gasped in a breath and started to bounce in excitement, looking down at his staff when the same frost appeared on the bark. The frost that lined his clothes was more prominent now._

_Jack instantly took off across the water, running as fast as he could, leaving behind exquisite trails of frost as he sprinted. He laughed and laughed, slipping on the slick surface a couple of times, but he didn't care. He kept running and running, laughing and swirling around as the whole lake was covered by his beautiful patterns._ The Guardians watched with wonder. They'd never seen anyone else's birth into the Spirit life before, and none of theirs had been anything like this. Of course, they didn't know the reason why that was, and why it was so different for Jack. _He sprinted, arms held behind his back, body leaning forwards, the whole lake coated in ever growing spindly shapes._

_After one final spin, something happened that Jack was certainly not expecting. He was suddenly gathered up by a strong gust of wind as if he weighed nothing, and spun high into the air. The trees whizzed by and seemed small beneath him, snow travelling with him, and he cried out in fear before he was held still in mid-air. He wriggled his arms and legs wildly to try to control his spinning and balance, staring down at the lake below him and the designs he'd left etched across the water._

The Guardians looked up with grins on all of their faces, matching Jack's… just before _he started to tumble back to the ground._ They watched as _he crashed through four sets of branches, the tree's limbs snapping beneath his weight, until he landed with a groan on one that he couldn't break with a figure so small. He gripped onto it for dear life and snow shimmered off the branch- luckily, he didn't seem even slightly hurt. He laughed like an amused kid while he pushed himself up, until his face dropped with interest when he heard the gentle music drifting from an area of the forest where there was warm orange light. He perched on the tree, squatting as he looked out over the trees to where the sounds were coming from._

The Guardians ran through the trees and arrived next to him, watching as he decided to take off and see what was happening over there. Sandy quickly picked North and Bunny up on a Dream Sand cloud and floated them above the trees while Tooth flew. He sensed the knife below, and he smiled as he took them down- Jack was making slow enough progress that they wouldn't miss anything. He grabbed it, once again not disguised whatsoever. It may have been a little bigger, but other than that, it was exactly the same dagger. He surrounded it with swirling golden Dream Sand until it was destroyed, and quickly flew his passengers back above the trees. _Below them was a small circle of houses- ones which they recognised from earlier memories. This was Burgess, the village how it used to be. There were more houses away from here, but this was the most populated area. Jack's house had been a little further away, down a dirt road they could see leading off. Three fires were lit, people gathered around them for warmth, and snow was settled all over the roofs. _

_Unfortunately, Jack's flying skills were, quite obviously, not good. It took him long enough to just get there, including one crash down through the trees again. He had contemplated walking, but decided against the notion, wanting to observe from above. He cried out in agitation and a little fear as the wind rocked him from side to side, still swirling his body in all kinds of directions. He took a dip down, about to make a rather good landing, until the last half-metre to the ground went drastically wrong. The wind simply dropped him into the snow, where he landed roughly with his cloak up over his head. _

The Guardians stifled laughs at his clumsiness.

_Jack stood to his feet, but he still couldn't see, so when he tried to step in the right direction he ended up stumbling sideways and landing on his side on the ground again. He jumped up to his feet and brushed away the snow that had stuck to his cloak with his palm, looking down at the powdery substance on his skin with a chuckle. Jack spun and laughed as he walked around, looking at the people of the village and the houses and the tools and carts that lay around._

_He approached a woman wearing a long lavender dress and a bonnet, greeting her with a lifted hand as if to wave. He laughed, moving on to a woman wearing a light green dress this time, grinning 'hello' at her. A man walked past, and he nodded his head and said 'hello' slightly more desperately this time. A couple sat on a bench by a house were deep in conversation, but Jack didn't care. 'Good evening, ma'am.' He lifted his hand again, gesturing a greeting, and a dog barked behind him. 'Ma'am?'_

The Guardians couldn't help but cringe, realising that very soon Jack was going to discover that nobody there could see him. What struck them the most, however, was the presence of a certain brown haired little girl, stood mere metres away from the Winter Spirit. _Lily was talking to a different man in a hat, oblivious to the presence of her brother, while he was oblivious to the presence of his sister._ What they were talking about, Jack either hadn't listened to or didn't remember, and so the Guardians couldn't hear her voice. She certainly didn't look happy, and the absence of their mother only made the Guardians feel unnerved. Surely she knew about Jack becoming a Spirit? He would have let his family know when he was chosen, wouldn't he? She looked lost and tired and distraught, and they were all still left wondering why Jack didn't remember his past life.

_Jack turned once more to a boy who looked strikingly like Jamie who was running towards him, politely leaning down to talk. 'Oh, uh, ex-excuse me, can you tell me where I am?' and not a second later, the child ran straight through the Winter Spirit, leaving ghostly blue trails. Jack gasped in a heavy breath and clutched at his chest, where he felt the twinge of his heart. Snow started to drift down in response to his emotions, which were so confused he couldn't make sense of what he was feeling. He twisted around to look at the boy now running away from him, his face blank and his breathing heavy, and before he could move away a woman and two men passed through him, too. He cried out each time, slowly backing away in little shuffles from the circle of houses. _

_'Hello?' Jack called out, loudly this time, hoping they could at least hear him. 'Hello?!' people started to go in for the night, leaving the area clear of villagers, and Jack just backed away. With tears in his eyes, he walked backwards away from the scene with one hand resting on his chest, looking desperately around at the people left outside. Like an infant turned away by his mother, his face scrunched with agony and confusion and he stepped back. _

_With wavering certainty, Jack Frost turned from the settlement he unknowingly grew up in, clutching at nothing with his palm, took one last painful look back on the circle of neat houses and a deep breath in, and walked away into the forest, never to be seen by the people of Burgess ever again._

* * *

I'M _OUT_ OF THE BUNKER! :D

Right, well, umm, I don't really know how to say this but um_**!**_**_100!_** REVIEWS** YOU INCREDIBLE PEOPLE I LOVE ALL OF YOU SO MUCH I JUST WANT TO THROW UP RAINBOWS EVERYWHERE I AM JUST SO HUMBLED AND AMAZED AND PRIVILEGED AND YOU ARE ALL BEAUTIFUL, WONDERFUL AND MAGNIFICENT!** Let's not stop here, eh? So this chapter is doubled up! It's still not even as long as several of my single chapter updates :P Only a few chapters left for the Repairing Arc! We're nearly on to Arc 3 (which Emily still hasn't come up with a name for), so buckle up! It's going to be a bumpy ride, with lots of those twists and turns and loopdy loops you all love so much ;)

Seriously though, you are all absolutely (in the words of the 9th Doctor) fantastic. Fantastic!  
Emily xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx a million times a trillion love for all of you reviewers for getting us to a hundred, and just as much for everyone else supporting my stupid fic :) You're all my favourites! Virtual hugs from me to all of you.

P.S: Tonight is first frost where I live in England, and I am just **very** happy. I looked up at the Moon, and I thanked him, and call me crazy but I thanked Jack too ;) Oh come on, who didn't look up at the Moon when they first watched the film and listened? If you didn't, you're lying.


	55. Birth

_'Slowly now, Jack.' Andrew said affectionately._

In front of the Guardians was a sweet sight- _a young Jack _(younger than they'd ever seen him so far)_ was being led up the staircase by his father, dressed in a tiny pair of white pyjamas and rubbing his eyes sleepily. He barely made it up each step, and as he was still small and very tired it was easier to go up one step at a time, one foot and then the other on each stair. His father held his hand gently, and as Andrew was so tall, Jack's arm was almost vertical to be able to reach his parent's palm._

_'Did mama do it?' Jack asked weakly, glancing up at his father when he had finished fisting his eyeballs._

_'Yes, she did it.' Andrew smiled, still leading his son slowly up the stairs of the dark house._ It must have been early morning or late night, but they couldn't tell. _'She's tired, Jack, so don't be too jumpy. I know you'll just want to have fun, but your mother needs her rest.'_

_'Okay, da.' Jack yawned widely. 'I'll try.'_

_When they reached the top of the stairs, they turned to one of the small doors and Andrew squatted down to Jack's height. He didn't say anything, he just smiled so brightly it was as if the sun had come up already, and Jack returned the grin. Andrew pulled his son into a tight hug, holding his still tiny body close. How he worried… Jack had barely grown over the past year or two, and he didn't seem to notice. He was shorter than all the other kids, and scrawnier too. But as much as Andrew wanted to help, to make him grow big and strong, there just weren't enough hours in the day for him to work for enough money. So they went short on food, and he would regularly sacrifice his own meals to give to his wife and son._

_And yet still, Jack stayed as thin as a twig._

_Putting the thoughts out of his mind, Andrew let go of his clutching son, afraid that he was going to fall asleep again. He wasn't used to being woken up past midnight. He'd slept on a pile of blankets downstairs, attempting to block out the sounds from upstairs, but failing miserably. He'd eventually fallen into disturbed sleep, but it was hours after he would have liked to have been dreaming._

_The two family members entered the warmly lit room hand in hand,_ closely followed by the four Guardians. What they saw on entrance made their hearts skip and pound in their chests.

_Emma sat upright on the double bed, exhausted but unable to sleep. Sheets and blankets lay around her, and a bucket of water and some other things. Her hair was plaited loosely down her shoulder and her hair frizzed out around her head from all the movement she had been making. There were two other people in the room, who quickly bid the family a good night and congratulations, then put on their hats and left the house. Emma looked down at a blanket in her arms with the weakest but happiest smile she could possibly muster._

_It was the elation of a mother._

_Jack hobbled over to the bed and scrambled awkwardly up onto the covers where he knelt beside his mother. He stared with eyes full of wonder, a tiny red face wrinkled and sleeping inside the bundle of warm fabrics._

_'Brother?' Jack asked simply and tentatively, looking straight at his mother with his wide and hopeful amber eyes._

_'Afraid not.' Emma chuckled at her son's heart-melting expression. 'A sister.'_

_'Sister?' Jack pondered the feel of the word on his tongue, rolling it around. 'Sister.' He decided that he didn't care about the gender anymore- all he could think was that he had a sibling. A real sibling… and… she would be his friend. He was sure of it. No more trying to get the other children's attention- he was done with it. He had a sister now, and he would bring her up and love her just as much as he would have a brother._

_Emma and Andrew both smiled gleefully at their awe-struck son. He looked as if he was mulling something over in his head, therefore not quite in contact with the world, but it wasn't unusual. He always daydreamed and fantasized, so much so that sometimes they couldn't snap him out of it. He had to do that himself. But then he came back into awareness and a grin pulled at the sides of his lips, almost as if he'd just had a revelation._

_'Can I play?' Jack asked, turning to his father for permission as well, one of his hands held to his chest. He twiddled his thumbs together and stroked the soft skin of his own palms._

_'No playing yet, mister.' Andrew said gruffly. It had been a long night. 'You've got a few minutes, then back to sleep, alright?'_

_'Can I go back in my bed, da?' Jack's huge tawny eyes bore deep holes in his father's heart. They had done ever since he was his sister's age. His eyes had opened barely a minute after he was born, already the colour of the sun shining through a thick piece of amber. That was the moment his parents had completely fallen in love with him, and they'd only fallen further in the five years and nine months since._

_'Of course.' Andrew grinned and ruffled the chestnut head of hair beneath him._

_Jack absorbed the silence. He stared down at the sleeping baby in his mother's arms, willing her to open her eyes- he was desperate to know what colour they were and whether they were like his. He quickly realised something. 'Wha'ss her name? Can I give her a name?'_

_Emma smiled so brightly at her son, the walls seemed to explode with life and light. 'Sorry Jack, we already gave her one.'_

_Jack stuck his bottom lip out, crossed his arms across his chest and sighed heavily, causing erupting laughter from both of his parents. 'Well then, wha' is it?' he asked impatiently, his anger still there, but decreased._

_'We liked Lily.' Emma beamed and pulled the little bundle closer to her, stroking the rosy cheek. 'Lily Frost.'_

_Jack didn't move for at least a minute. He looked like he was thinking very hard about something. His face suddenly lit up, and he pulled his mischievous grin- _the Guardians smiled, seeing the expression they were so familiar with on the child when he was so young. _'Overland.' Jack stated simply._

_His parents looked about as baffled as was possible. 'What?' Andrew offered, sitting on the edge of the bed next to his family. When Jack didn't reply, instead just carrying on smirking, Emma and Andrew shared a look._

_'What are you talking about, Jackson?' Emma asked._

_'O-ver-land!' Jack pronounced every syllable with great importance. 'Exactly! Jackson Overland!' he bounced on the straw mattress slightly, jostling the two adults there as well. When he stopped, realising neither of them understood, he just rolled his eyes and groaned as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. 'I have Overlan'. She has nothing!' he pointed at the blankets, where a little foot started to wriggle._

_'You mean… You mean a middle name?' Andrew suggested, tilting his head slightly._

_Jack nodded madly in wild excitement, until his face dimmed and a storm fell over his eyes in threat. 'You have ta lemme give her one or else I… else I…' he paused, thinking hard. His eyes glistened and he looked up from the blankets to his mother as if smacked around the face with a sudden revelation in fish form. 'Else-I… Else-I. Els… Elsa.'_

_'Elsa?' Emma's brown eyebrows furrowed together in contemplation. 'That's beautiful, Jack. Lily Elsa Frost.' She looked down at her child in her arms, then to her young son. 'Lily Elsa Frost she is.'_

_Jack said nothing. His fringe stuck out wildly in every direction- there were two clumps of hair right on top of his head that always spiked upwards, and no matter how hard they'd tried to brush them down, they always stayed. It never ceased to make his parents laugh, and Andrew struggled to stifle a giggle. He longingly looked up at his mother, melting in her gentle stare. Emma reached down and softly pulled him into a tight one-armed hug, kissing his head and rubbing his back. Jack wormed his way out of her hold after a few minutes but didn't manage to stay balanced- he fell right onto his back like a turtle flipped over, and Andrew took his opportunity. He started tickling the little boy's tummy mercilessly, emitting almost howling laughter from his son, until Jack finally lashed out and caught his tiny hand on his father's face. He wriggled away on the sheets, scrambling desperately on his belly at the fabric until he almost reached the other side of the bed, at which point he was dragged back by his chubby ankles to his father, giggling uncontrollably as he tried to escape. _

_Andrew scooped the excitable child up by his armpits into his hold, lifting him high above his head and jiggling the squirming boy up and down. They laughed, and so did Emma, until she loudly hushed them. Both boys fell silent and looked to the woman, frozen in their play- Jack was held up in the air, Andrew's arms lifted and supporting the growing weight of his son. She stared at her waking new-born with utter fascination. From inside the blankets could be heard stifled and stuttering gurgling, the fabric jostling with the movement of restricted, tiny limbs._

_Jack stumbled out of his father's grip and ran towards the baby, his hands held in anticipation in front of his chest. Andrew moved to sit next to Emma, hauling his legs up onto the bed as well to sit next to his wife. Jack crawled into the crook of his mother's arm, right between both of his parents and stared at the roll of blankets right in front of his face. His eyes widened with captivation, and Andrew choked on a sob. Tears freely ran down his cheeks, and he just let them fall while he put an arm around his tired partner, kissing her on the lips to prove how proud he was. Jack was unaffected, just continuing his staring match with the fabric in front of him._

It was only when the Guardians moved closer that they realised what it was that was so different that had the whole family so engrossed in the baby. _Lily's eyes were wide open and she yawned breathlessly. Her irises were so huge, none of the whites of her eyes could be seen, and they shone a soft orange in the muted candle light. She blinked slowly several times, owlish orbs staring entranced up at her mother through thick, fanned out eyelashes. Emma loosened the wraps and carefully pulled out a chubby arm, the hand of which reached straight to jam her fingers into her toothless gums. Lily suckled on her own digits and just kept staring, her legs occasionally kicking out and her back arching into different positions. If this were the time when a family wished the camera had been invented already, this would be it. It was a beautiful enough sight to want it to be framed._

While the family were still, Sandy noticed an item that didn't fit placed on the rickety bedside table. It was a clock- an alarm clock- and even though it looked old enough to be the first of its kind, it was still way out of its time. _How ironic_, Sandy couldn't help but think. He floated over to it and picked it up, displeased with the unpleasant sensation of black tendrils searching their way up through his veins as he held it. He quickly shoved it in a Dream Sand sack and destroyed it- the further the Guardians went, the sloppier Pitch seemed to be getting at hiding the memory demon. Perhaps he'd been in a hurry once they'd started treating the Winter Spirit. Realising he didn't care why, Sandy abruptly turned back to the heart-melting-like-butter-in-the-Outback memory before him.

_After a few minutes, Jack became impatient. He lifted a small hand and placed it on Lily's wrinkled forehead, feeling the lingering moistness in her skin but enjoying the tingling of warmth under his fingertips as he traced her barely visible hairline, tickling the downy hairs that felt like fluff all the way to the base of her neck. _The Guardians all nearly screamed, including Bunny. _Jack prodded her nose carefully then ran his palm down to under the blankets, barely making contact with the fabric until he met the chapped back of his mother's hand. She looked down on him and nodded with a smile, understanding what it was that he wanted._

_Slowly, Emma passed the bundle into Jack's small arms, his shoulders hunched up to his ears as he tensed with fear of hurting the baby. Emma kept her hands underneath, even when her son had full hold on her daughter… daughter. She had a daughter. The boy breathed heavily towards the new-born gurgling in his arms, bringing her so close to his face that their noses almost touched. Lily managed to free her other arm and grabbed at the blanket around her, then stopped and simply held her palm open. Jack flicked his eyes to the wrinkled hand open in invitation and shifted her against his chest in order to cradle her on one arm like his mother had done earlier. With his now free hand, he placed his thumb inside the tiny palm and exhaled heavily when the miniature fingers clamped tight. Her doughy gaze lifted to her brother's, and they just watched one another for minutes on end, very still and absolutely silent apart from the heavy breathing coming from Jack and the reserved babbling from Lily._

_After what felt like hours, Jack finally moved. He swallowed the emotional lump in his throat and put the child down in his lap, if only for a second. When he'd repositioned, he lifted Lily under her armpits like his father had done to him earlier, only more caring. Both parents shared slightly concerned glances, but the boy seemed to not be struggling with her weight whatsoever. He held her upright so that she was face to face with him, while Emma kept her little head in position to stop it from dangling dangerously. After a few moments of hesitation, Jack shut his eyes and took in a breath, holding it and not daring to let it go. Not until his nose met Lily's nose, and their foreheads touched. Warmth spread through Jack's body and he shuddered slightly as he exhaled and opened his eyes to the dark pools that held his gaze. Lily didn't move or struggle, instead just hung limply in her brother's hold, the trust already forming, the bond knitting and knotting invisible strings between the two children that brought heat flushing throughout the whole stuffy room._

_Jack pulled away, then hastily pressed a tender kiss to Lily's forehead, his eyes prickling with unshed tears of joy. He pulled her into an adoring hug against his shoulder, then reluctantly passed her onto his father. Andrew couldn't stop the waterworks from flowing when he held his daughter again, so Emma pulled him closer- trapping Jack between the two. He squeezed out and placed himself a little further forward, still nestled next to his mother and father's legs. The heat radiated out from the adults around him, and he curled up on the sheets, drifting off into sleep._

Of course, the Guardians never saw, but _when Andrew and Emma next looked down, Jack was fast asleep, sheets crinkled around his small body, clutching onto them with his fists, a tranquil and serene expression settled over his small features. His heavy breaths echoed calmly around the room, and Lily fell asleep at that exact moment, too._

* * *

Oh. My. Goodness.  
I actually had to stop writing this scene several times, for several different reasons. Number 1 being that it was just so cute I can't even... I couldn't describe it the way that I see it in my head, and for that I'm sorry, because it's gorgeous in my mind's eye. Number 2 being that I listened to Doctor Who music that made me cry a little. Number 3 being that I listened to Merlin music that made me openly sob. But hey ho, my fault I guess. ;_;

Did I mention enough last chapter how amazing you all are? Like, really, you are. Everyone... the next chapter is the last of the Repairing arc- and I'm sure you can guess what memory that will be! There'll be a little bit of a twist, well, not a twist so much as just different to the way other people do it. We won't go straight into the part we see in the film, if that makes any sense. Well, it will next chapter, so that's alright ;)  
I hope you all enjoyed this massive ball of fluff, I couldn't not put this in! _IT'S SO CUTE MY HEART IS GIVING OUT-_

Please keep doing what you're doing, I love you all,  
Emily xxxx :D (If you can, I'm asking you to please donate some money towards the people of the Philippines this week, after being hit by such a huge storm. It really is devastating, and I'm begging you just to give _something_ to help, from the good of your heart :) )


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